'Everything will be clear by November 4', says NCP Chief Ajit Pawar

In view of the upcoming assembly election, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar visited Malad for the election campaign on Friday.

On October 28, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister and NCP chief Ajit Pawar filed his nomination from the Baramati assembly seat. Ajit Pawar split the NCP in June 2023.

Notably, his nephew and grandson of Sharad Pawar, Yugendra Pawar, is contesting from the same constituency as the NCP-SP candidate.

When asked about NCP leader and candidate from Mankhurd Shivaji Nagar, Nawab Malik, Maharashtra Deputy CM Ajit Pawar says, "By November 4, it will be clear which candidate will contest from which seat."

 

Earlier on Thursday, Mumbai BJP Chief Ashish Shelar said that the NCP Chief Ajit Pawar should not have given a ticket to Nawab Malik.

"Ajit Pawar should not have given him a ticket; many in Maharashtra think this way. The serious allegations and chargesheet against him are unacceptable to Maharashtra... The BJP has made its stance clear. Maharashtra opposes an international terrorist like Dawood. Despite this, if he has been given a ticket, the BJP cannot associate with such people. We won't campaign for this candidate. Instead, we'll support the candidate running against him," he said.

Malik however remains determined to stay in the fray, "Bharatiya Janata Party or the Shiv Sena Shinde faction is opposing us is not a matter of concern for us. This is expected to happen and we will win with a huge margin in both assemblies."

Meanwhile, the fight for the Baramati Lok Sabha seat is one of prestige between the Pawar family with Deputy CM Ajit Pawar pitted against his nephew Yugendra Pawar. Ajit Pawar had lost the Lok sabha faceoff when his sister Supriya Sule defeated his wife on the seat.

Supriya Sule believed Yugendra Pawar's nomination was a good thing for the party to get rejuvenated as it would help them create a balance of new ideas and deep experiences.

Earlier, Yugendra Pawar said that he feels that the fight against his own uncle won't be tough but won't be easy either.

He said, "I don't think it will be tough but I don't even think that it will be easy either. But initially, Pawar Sahab was supporting Ajit Pawar, we fondly call him Dada but the people of Baramati in large numbers are behind Pawar Sahab and that is what they showed in Lok Sabha. They will show this in the upcoming assembly as well as other elections also."

The BJP is in alliance with NCP (Ajit Pawar), and Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde), called the Mahayuti alliance. The other major alliance for the state's assembly election is the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA), comprising of Congress, Sharad Pawar-led NCP, and Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena.

The Maharashtra Assembly elections are scheduled for November 20, with counting for all 288 constituencies set for November 23. In the 2019 assembly elections, the BJP won 105 seats, the Shiv Sena 56, and the Congress 44. In 2014, the BJP secured 122 seats, the Shiv Sena 63, and the Congress 42.