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NCP protests use ED case against Pawars to galvanise cadre
Rasta rokos were held in various parts of Pune, with a bandh being observed at at Pawar’s hometown Baramati. The NCP workers tried to block roads, though the police did not allow them to do so
Nationalist Congress Party's (NCP) city unit, on Wednesday, agitated against the Devendra Fadnavis government and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for filing a case against party chief Sharad Pawar.
Rasta rokos were held in various parts of Pune, with a bandh being observed at at Pawar’s hometown Baramati. The NCP workers tried to block roads, though the police did not allow them to do so.
Through the protest, NCP wants to galvanise cadre ahead of Maharashtra assembly polls scheduled on October 21.
This follows the Enforcement Directorate registering its version of an FIR, called the ECIR (enforcement case information report), naming Sharad Pawar and senior NCP leader Ajit Pawar, among several others.
The case involves allegations of Rs 25,000 crore being misappropriated in terms of loans being issued by the Maharashtra state cooperative bank.
Reacting to case against him, Pawar said, ”I got a tremendous response from workers during my recent tour of western Maharashtra and Marathwada. I would have been surprised had the ED not acted against me in view of such a tremendous response,” adding that he has never been the director or any bank.
In Baramati, NCP workers and office bearers agitated in front of the Lokmanya Tilak statue near Mahatma Phule Mandai. Pawar and his nephew Ajit are in Mumbai to attend a crucial party meeting.
In Pune, NCP workers tried to block the road at Mandai in Budhwar peth, but police did not allow them to do so.
NCP city unit president Chetan Tupe, state women’s wing president Rupali Chakankar, spokesperson Ankush Kakade and other office bearers led the agitations.
NCP workers wore black shirts and black bands on the head shouting slogans against the BJP and ED.
Tupe said, "Pawar was not a director of any co-operative bank in the state. Despite that the government carried out this action. Considering the state assembly elections, the government had taken this action intentionally."
Despite the exit of several hiigh-profile NCP leaders, Pawar’s tour of Maharashtra has shown signs of him reconnecting with the common workers.
