Sharad Pawar’s refusal to acknowledge family ties is painful: Walse Patil

Earlier on Wednesday Sharad Pawar during a rally in support of his candidate Devdutt Nikam who is contesting against Walse Patil in the Ambegaon

State cooperation minister Dilip Walse Patil, a key leader of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), has expressed anguish over NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar’s denial of any familial ties between their families. Reacting to Pawar’s harsh criticism of him earlier this week, Walse Patil on Saturday said the rejection of long-standing personal associations was deeply hurtful.

For the first time, Pawar called Walse Patil a “traitor” and urged voters to defeat him, further emphasizing that there were no family ties between the two families.  (HT PHOTO)

“Whether there are family relations between the Pawar and Walse Patil families is not the main issue. What is painful is Pawar Saheb’s outright denial,” Walse Patil said. “If someone has visited another’s house for 40 years, what should that be called? Let the people decide. In the past four decades, I have never heard Pawar Saheb use such harsh language against anyone.”

Earlier on Wednesday Sharad Pawar during a rally in support of his candidate Devdutt Nikam who is contesting against Walse Patil in the Ambegaon constituency for the November 20 assembly elections called his one-time protege a “traitor”.

For the first time, Pawar called Walse Patil a “traitor” and urged voters to defeat him, further emphasizing that there were no family ties between the two families.

Responding to these allegations, Walse Patil said, “I never claimed to be Pawar Saheb’s protégé; it was the people who referred to me that way. Just because families meet at public events doesn’t necessarily mean there are family ties. Whenever Pratibha Vahini, Sharad Pawar’s wife, visited Bhimashankar, she also visited our home. I started working as Pawar Saheb’s personal assistant at the age of 25 after completing my graduation. Later, I served as an MLA. For 40 years, I had access to their home. If Sharad Pawar says there weren’t family ties, so be it.”

He added, “My father and Sharad Pawar became MLAs together in 1967. Pawar Saheb himself once said that my father stood by him like a mountain. When he became chief minister, Mrs Pawar visited our home, and the connection continued. As for my daughter and Supriya Sule, their association was purely professional, limited to their work at the Yashwantrao Chavan Centre.”

Explaining his alignment with the Ajit Pawar-led faction, Walse Patil stated that it was not an individual decision but a collective one made in a meeting of 42 MLAs. He dismissed allegations of coercion or pressure from investigative agencies.

“I have not received any notices from the Enforcement Directorate (ED), Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), or any other investigative body. If it is proven that I have, I will withdraw my candidacy immediately,” he said.

Walse Patil’s remarks reflect a mix of personal disappointment and political pragmatism, as the rift within the NCP continues to play out publicly in the run-up to the state assembly elections.