NCP SP leader Jayant Patil meets Maharashtra BJP president dismisses political motives

    Mumbai, Feb 25 (PTI) A meeting between Maharashtra NCP (SP) president Jayant Patil and his counterpart from BJP, Chandrashekhar Bawankule, has sparked speculation over Patil's political stance.
    Both Patil and state Revenue Minister Bawankule stressed that they didn't discuss politics during the meeting in Mumbai.
    Patil said he met Bawankule on Monday evening over works related to his constituency in Sangli district.
    "Yes, I met Bawankule. I visited him for constituency-related work. I was accompanied by a delegation, and no political discussions were held during the 25-minute meeting. Instead, we focused solely on various petitions concerning local issues," Patil told reporters.
    Patil, a former minister, is known as a staunch supporter of NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar.
    Patil presented at least a dozen demands related to issues in Sangli district at the meeting and highlighted concerns regarding the online processing of land records, indicating that timely corrections are not being made.
    "This was a significant issue that I brought to Bawankule's attention," Patil said, adding that numerous matters concerning land acquisitions need to be resolved.
    Bawankule said state minister Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil was also present in the meeting, which took place at the former's official residence in Mumbai.
    "Nearly 400 to 500 people were also present. No political discussion took place in the meeting," he added.
    Patil recently shared the stage with Union minister and BJP MP Nitin Gadkari at an event.
    As speculation over Patil's political position keeps surfacing, the Islampur MLA had sarcastically asked the media not to report that Gadkari is joining the NCP (SP).

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)