Senior NCP leader Ajit Pawar on Monday said he was accepting the challenge thrown by the ruling BJP which has announced Dhangar leader Gopichand Padalkar as its candidate from Baramati Assembly seat.
Pawar, who resigned from the Assembly after being named by the Enforcement Directorate in the multi-crore Maharashtra State Cooperative Bank scam, said he planned to "fight fire with fire".
"I accept the challenge. I am ready to fight fire with fire," he said.
Earlier in the day, while inducting Padalkar into the BJP, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said, "He (Padalkar) is like a tiger, who should challenge a major established leader. If he is ready, I will try to field him from Baramati Assembly seat."