Days after Ajit Pawar broke the party to join the Eknath Shinde government in Maharashtra, the fate of NCP will become clearer on Wednesday as both faction — one led by party president Sharad Pawar and another by his nephew Ajit Pawar — has called a crucial meeting of legislators.
While Sharad Pawar has called a meeting at 1 pm at Y B Chavan Centre, Ajit Pawar faction will meet at Bhujbal Knowledge City in suburban Bandra at 11 am. While the Sharad Pawar group issued a whip to all MLAs asking them to remain present at the meeting, Ajit faction too issued a notice to all current and former legislators, parliamentarians, office-bearers, working committee members and others, asking them to attend a meeting convened by Sunil Tatkare.
The MLAs attending the meetings will reveal which faction has the numbers, thereby settling the 'who is the real NCP' question.
Reports quoting sources within the Ajit Pawar faction said as many as 42 MLAs have signed affidavits in support of Ajit Pawar, while Jayant Patil, state president of the NCP's Sharad Pawar group, said they have asked 44 MLAs, barring the nine legislators who joined the Shinde Cabinet, to attend the meeting.
"Barring the nine who took oath, all the other MLAs are with us. Wait for Wednesday, then we will know the actual strength of the Sharad Pawar-led NCP. My office telephoned all 44 legislators and sent them emails and WhatsApp messages. We ensured each of those legislators had been contacted and has received the message well in advance. We expect them to attend the crucial meeting and express their solidarity with NCP," Patil was quoted by The Times Of India.
Meanwhile, reports have emerged that a power struggle is on between BJP, Shinde-led Shiv Sena and NCP over portfolio allocation. Though Ajit Pawar, after attending his first Cabinet meeting, told reporters that everything was working fine, reports have emerged that Shiv Sena leaders have openly expressed their displeasure over the BJP’s bringing in a new ally.
Chief Minister Shinde was reportedly uncomfortable during the Cabinet meeting, Hindustan Times quoted unnamed sources. "His body language and that of his ministers was subdued, while the Ajit Pawar camp appeared to be aggressive," said an official. "Besides that, Pawar and Fadnavis were seen to be more friendly, which gave an impression that Shinde was isolated."