After meeting Amit Shah, NCP MLAs tell Sunetra Pawar feud ‘weakening party’

Lack of clarity on the internal differences in the party, stalled constituency work and the loss of the crucial Finance portfolio – these were among the concerns raised by NCP MLAs in its meeting held on Tuesday Deputy Chief Minister Sunetra Pawar’s official residence, Devgiri, sources said.

The meeting came 48 hours after senior NCP leaders, in the absence of party president Sunetra Pawar, met Union Home Minister Amit Shah. According to sources, several legislators questioned the ongoing differences among the party’s senior leadership, saying the repeated public airing of internal disputes was weakening the organisation at the grassroots.

“MLAs expressed that they receive no clarity on the ground regarding the ongoing disputes among senior leaders. The continuous public exposure of internal conflicts is weakening the party,” said a senior party leader who attended the meeting.

The legislators also questioned why constituency-level work was not progressing despite the NCP being part of the ruling Mahayuti government. They sought clarity on what had transpired over the Finance portfolio,which was held by the late Ajit Pawar in the Devendra Fadnavis government.

MLA Anil Bhaidas Patil specifically demanded that the party make concerted efforts to reclaim it. Several MLAs also complained about alliance partners, alleging that constituency-level proposals and development works were not being cleared by departments headed by ministers from Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena.

State NCP president Sunil Tatkare, meanwhile, briefed the legislators on strengthening the party organisation and asked them to visit drought-affected areas across Maharashtra. He directed them to meet farmers, understand their grievances and make efforts to ensure they receive government assistance.

Tatkare assured the MLAs that their concerns, including those arising from the differences among senior leaders, would be taken up at a meeting of the party’s senior leadership. The meeting was attended by NCP MLAs and MPs, Sunetra Pawar, and her sons Parth and Jay Pawar.

Before the meeting, Sunetra Pawar had said the discussions would focus on strengthening the party organisation and that the internal feud would not be on the agenda. Alok Deshpande is a Special Correspondent with The Indian Express' Mumbai bureau, recognized for his...

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