'Am I A Toy In Your Hands': Senior NCP Leader Bhujbal Slams Supremo Ajit Pawar Over Maharashtra Cabinet Snub

Bhujbal claimed that CM Devendra Fadnavis was in favour of his induction in the new council of ministers and said he was trying to find out who was against him getting a ministerial berth.

Miffed over his exclusion in the recent Maharashtra Cabinet expansion, senior NCP leader Chhagan Bhujbal on Tuesday hit out at the party President and Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar asking if he was a "toy in their hands". The Samata Parishad founder claimed that CM Devendra Fadnavis was in favour of his inclusion in the new council of ministers as he trained guns at Pawar and Working President Praful Patel over the snub.

Bhujbal also decided to skip the ongoing Winter Session of the House and reached Nashik on Tuesday. He also met his supporters and stated that he would find out who was against him getting a ministerial berth despite the Maharashtra CM being in favour of his induction. 

"I will discuss with all the workers in the state and think about the next step. In a democracy, everyone has the right to express his or her views. I am trying to find out who rejected me for the ministerial post," he said.

The NCP legislator's 'jahan nahi chaina, wahan nahi rehna' remark on Monday after his exclusion had sparked specualtions of a possible rift. Now he has declared he would make a statement about his decision after discussing with NCP workers and people from his Yeola constituency from where he had won. 

"Ajit Pawar and Praful Patel had said that they will discuss with me about giving me a ministerial berth. But they did not sit down for a discussion. No one from Ajit Pawar or Praful Patel’s office called me. I am not a toy in their hands. If I resign, what will the people of my constituency think if I decide to consider their offer to go to Rajya Sabha," he commented.

Training guns at Ajit Pawar and Praful Patel, Bhujbal further stated: "Chhagan Bhujbal is not that kind of a person who if told to sit down will sit down and if told to stand up, will stand up."

"The decision for every party is taken by the party chief. Just like Devendra Fadnavis takes the decision for the BJP, Eknath Shinde takes the decision for the Shiv Sena. Similarly, Ajit Pawar takes the decision for our group," Bhujbal added.

Bhujbal further claimed: "Chief Minister Fadnavis had insisted that I should be in the Cabinet. I have confirmed this myself. I did not declare my name in the Lok Sabha. The Rajya Sabha seat came up. I said ‘let me go’, but I was not given a ticket. Party legislator Makrand Patil's brother Nitin Patil was given a nomination."

He revealed he had been told by the party that he was needed and was asked to contest the Assembly polls but was later offered Rajya Sabha after the win.

  "I have been here for 40 years. At that time, the party told me that I was needed in the state and asked me to contest the Assembly election. I fought and won."

"Now the party has offered me a Rajya Sabha seat saying that as Makrand Patil has been inducted into the Cabinet his brother Nitin Patil will be asked to resign from the Rajya Sabha," said Bhujbal.

He declared he has denied NCP's Rajya Sabha offer as it would be an act of betrayal for the Yevala constituency which supported him.

"I contested the election and won. My workers risked their lives for my victory. What can I tell them? So I cannot resign from the Legislative Assembly now. If I want to go to the Rajya Sabha, I will have to resign from the Legislative Assembly. I told them that I will leave after two years. Till then, I will solve whatever issues there are in the constituency. After that, they said that we will discuss. But they did not sit down for a discussion," said Chhagan Bhujbal.

"Everyone wants a ministerial berth. The issue is not about the ministerial berth, but the way it was disregarded," he added.

The Maharashtra cabinet expansion took place on Sunday, wherein 39 new members were inducted to Fadnavis's team. These included 19 from the Bharatiya Janata Party, 11 from Shiv Sena, and nine from NCP.

The NCP leader also stated he was asked to contest the Lok Sabha polls from Nashik on the insistence of PM Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah, however, his name was withdrawed after a month.

"All preparations were made, a lot of supporters approached me. If they wanted to make me contest, then they should have announced my name. They took a month for that and thereafter I announced my withdrawal from contesting the General Election from Nashik," he said.