Maha Pawar Struggle: Poll Body To Hear Arguments In Sharad-Vs-Ajit Fight To Decide On 'Real NCP' Today

NCP Symbol Row: Deviating from his previous stance of "there's no split in NCP", Sharad Pawar on Thursday said that those who have joined hands with the BJP cannot belong to the NCP.

Ajit Pawar and Sharad Pawar are locked in a tussle to stake claim of the NCP's name and election symbol.

Source : PTI

NCP Symbol Row: The Election Commission on Friday heard arguments on the "real NCP" tussle between party chief Sharad Pawar and his nephew and Maharashtra Deputy CM Ajit Pawar. With the Maharashtra Assembly election and the Lok Sabha polls due next year, the EC will soon have to decide which faction will get to retain the Nationalist Congress Party name and its poll symbol — the analogue clock.

A day before the hearing Pawar senior exuded confidence of retaining both. He said: "Everyone knows who is the party founder. What the common man thinks is important. Some people have taken a different political stand and I don't want to comment on it as it is their right in a democracy. But, Maharashtra and the rest of the country know who is the founder of NCP. There is truth in what my people say that the situation is favourable to us." 

Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut on Friday said, "Sharad Pawar will appear before the Election Commission today. It is very surprising. The founder and president of the party will sit before the Commission and his rivals will say that this is not his party. Today is a test for the Election Commission."

Deviating from his previous stance of "there's no split in NCP", Sharad Pawar said: "Those who have joined hands with the BJP cannot belong to the NCP. We don't accept compromise in such a manner."

NCP MP and Sharad Pawar's daughter Supriya Sule said that there is no fight in the party adding there is no question of the symbol ‘going away'.

“There is no fight in the NCP... The party was established by Sharad Pawar 25 years ago... From Kashmir to Kanyakumari, everyone knows NCP means Sharad Pawar. NCP national president is Sharad Pawar, and the Maharashtra state president is Jayant Patil. There is no question of it (the symbol) going away. The party was made by Sharad Pawar, so the symbol should remain with him it is obvious,” Supriya Sule 

Sharad Pawar had seemingly sidelined Ajit Pawar after his unsuccessful attempt to form government with BJP in November 2019. On July 2 this year, Ajit Pawar got back to power as he took the Deputy CM's oath in the Shiv Sena (Shinde faction)-BJP government, along with 36 NCP MLAs.

Soon after his surprise move, the NCP went through several ups and downs as claims and counter-claims flew around over the circumstances of Ajit Pawar's shocker. While many claimed that Ajit was inducted in the government in lieu of his assurance to bring Sharad Pawar into the NDA folds, the MVA alliance in Maharashtra has denied that the senior Pawar had been mulling over such an offer. 

The fight for control over the NCP reached the Election Commission on July 5 when Ajit Pawar submitted a petition, staking claim over the party's election symbol and 40 affidavits in support of it from MPs and MLAs of his faction. The Sharad Pawar faction then filed a caveat and requested to be heard first.