Despite political division, Ajit asks Mahayuti not to hit Uncle Pawar

Mumbai, November 7 (IANS): Though they are politically divided, NCP National President and Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar gave an ultimatum to his Mahayuti alliance partners and said he and his party will not make any personal attack on his estranged uncle and veteran politician Sharad Pawar, who is now headed by the NCP would tolerate. (SP).

Ajit Pawar’s stern warning comes at a time when the campaign for the Assembly elections is gaining momentum.

The trigger for Ajit Pawar’s outburst is BJP lawmaker and Ryat Kranti Sanghatana chief Sadabhau Khot’s vitriolic criticism of Pawar senior during the election rally of BJP nominee Gopichand Padalkar from Jat constituency in Sangli district.

“Pawar Saheb says he wants to change the face of Maharashtra. Which face? Do you want to make the face of Maharashtra like yours? Khot is said to have said.

Khot’s attempt to relax the personal attacks against Sharad Pawar drew strong reactions not only from the NCP(SP) but also from the Ajit Pawar faction.

Khot’s timing to attack Pawar senior by stooping to such a low has also embarrassed the BJP and Shiv Sena, which along with the Ajit Pawar faction in the Mahayuti are gearing up to approach voters on the development plank.

In a strongly worded remark, Ajit Pawar lambasted Khot and warned the Mahayuti that he and his party would not accept any personal criticism of Sharad Pawar.

“Sadabhau Khot’s statement about respected senior leader Pawar Saheb is deeply wrong and condemnable. It is completely unacceptable for us to express personal criticism of Pawar Saheb at such a low level. This is not the culture of our Maharashtra.

“On behalf of the Nationalist Congress Party and personally, I strongly condemn this statement. Henceforth, the NCP will not tolerate any personal criticism of Sharad Pawar,” he warned.

It was not just Ajit Pawar, but NCP(SP) chief Sharad Pawar’s close confidant Dilip Walse-Patil, who abandoned him and joined hands with Ajit Pawar, who also criticized Khot saying that “Sadabhau Khot has stooped to a low level and made a disgusting statement about the respected Sharad Pawar Sahib, our senior leader and the pillar of us all. I condemn this statement, it is a very scandalous statement.

“We will never tolerate such statements. Furthermore, everyone should avoid these types of statements and conduct a poll campaign with a sense of purpose and awareness.”

It is to be mentioned that Ajit Pawar has already told his party leaders including ministers and nominees apart from other officials not to criticize Sharad Pawar personally nor make any baseless accusations knowing that Pawar senior will get sympathy and this will benefit his party a lot will help.

Ajit Pawar had experienced it personally after targeting his estranged uncle during the Lok Sabha elections, where his wife Sunetra Pawar lost to NMC (SP) nominee Supriya Sule in a Pawar-Pawar fight.

Ajit Pawar has asked the party functionaries to corner the Sharad Pawar-led party and other opposition parties on policy issues, avoiding personal comments.

Interestingly, Ajit Pawar, who is engaged in a fierce battle against his cousin and NCP(SP) candidate Yugendra Pawar in Baramati constituency, never responded after the ‘bhatakti atma (wandering soul)’ rant during the Lok Sabha elections of Prime Minister Narendra Modi against Sharad. Pawar.

Further, Ajit Pawar preferred not to react after Home Minister Amit Shah called Sharad Pawar ‘bhrashtachar ka sabse bada sargana (Godfather of corruption)’ during the BJP rally in Pune in July.

However, Ajit Pawar responded to Khot’s attack on Sharad Pawar, realizing that it could seriously hamper his electoral prospects in Baramati.

Meanwhile, after strong protests, Khot apologized and said he had no intention of sarcastically attacking anyone’s disfigurement.

“I take back those words and apologize,” he said.