Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar stressed that one should not allow politics to enter home as he agreed making a mistake by fielding his wife Sunetra Pawar against his cousin Supriya Sule in the Baramati constituency in the recent Lok Sabha polls.
In an interview with Marathi news channel Jai Maharashtra, Ajit Pawar, who is currently on a statewide 'Jan Samman Yatra' said that the decision was made by the Nationalist Congress Party's parliamentary board. He added that the decision was wrong.
"I love all my sisters. One shouldn't allow politics to enter homes. I made a mistake in fielding Sunetra against my sister. This shouldn't have happened. But the parliamentary board (of NCP) made a decision. Now I feel it was wrong," Ajit Pawar said.
Sunetra Pawar, who was pitted against sitting NCP (SP) Supriya Sule in her family bastion Baramati, unsuccessfully contested the Lok Sabha election, held earlier this year. Thereafter, she was later elected to the Rajya Sabha.
Sule is the daughter of Ajit Pawar's uncle Sharad Pawar, the NCP (SP) supremo. She won from the Baramati seat for the fourth time in a row with a margin of 1.5 lakh votes. Prior to Sule, Sharad Pawar had won 14 times from the Baramati, a seat the party has nurtured since 1967.
Responding to whether he will visit his cousin Supriya Sule on Raksha Bandhan next week, Ajit Pawar said that he is currently on a tour and if he and his sisters are at teh same place that day, he would definitely meet them on the festival, news agency PTI reported.
The deputy CM also added that he has decided to talk only about development and welfare schemes for farmers, women and youth instead of responding to criticism against him.
Ajit Pawar also said Sharad Pawar is a senior leader and "head of their family" and he would not react to any criticism made by his uncle.
On being asked if the senior Pawar was being targeted by the ruling BJP and Shiv Sena, the NCP leader said the Mahayuti allies should understand what they speak. "I voice my opinion when we sit together," he added.
Ahead of the Maharashtra Assembly polls, Pawar, as a part of his mass outreach programme, has been promoting the government's 'Mukhyamantri Ladki Bahin Yojana', which is aimed at providing financial assistance of Rs 1,500 per month to women.
In July last year, Ajit Pawar along with several other MLAs joined the Shiv Sena-BJP government, which led to a split in the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) founded Sharad Pawar. Later, the Election Commission declared the Ajit-led faction as the "real" NCP.