‘Nobody loves more…’: Ajit Pawar's ‘family’ advice to NCP colleague's daughter
Ajit Pawar has publicly admitted for the second time in less than a month that he made a mistake by fielding his wife against NCP (SP) leader Supriya Sule.
Maharashtra deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar advised his party colleague's daughter to avoid joining the Sharad Pawar-led NCP.
“Nobody loves a daughter more than her father… Support your father and help him win," he told her.
While addressing the Jansamman rally organised by the NCP in Gadchiroli city on Friday, the Nationalist Congress Party chief attempted to dissuade party leader and state minister Dharmarao Baba Aatram’s daughter Bhagyashri from joining the Sharad Pawar-led NCP (SP).
There is speculation about a potential contest between Bhagyashri and her father in the upcoming state assembly elections in Maharashtra.
Pawar said that society disapproves of family rifts, acknowledging his own experience with such conflicts and admitting his “mistake.”
“Nobody loves a daughter more than her father. Despite giving her away in marriage in Belgaum, he (Aatram) stood by her in Gadchiroli and made her the president of Zilla Parishad. Now you (Bhagyashri) are set to fight against your own father. Is this right?” PTI quoted Ajit Pawar as saying.
"You should support your father and help him win because only he has the capacity and determination to develop the region. The society never accepts breaking one's own family. I have experienced it myself and accepted my mistake," he added.
His statement was an apparent reference to the recent Lok Sabha contest between his wife, Sunetra and his cousin Supriya Sule.
The NCP, led by Ajit Pawar, faced a significant defeat in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, losing three of the four constituencies it contested including Baramati.
Pawar has publicly admitted for the second time in less than a month that he made a mistake by fielding his wife against NCP (SP) leader Supriya Sule, the daughter of his uncle Sharad Pawar.
He also mentioned that politics should not mix with family issues. His “admission” of mistake came against the backdrop of poor performance by the NCP, one of the constituents of the Mahayuti alliance in the state, in its first general elections following the party's split.
Aatram, an MLA from Aheri in Gadchiroli district has aligned with Ajit Pawar. Ajit Pawar remarked, “Aatram's daughter learned politics from her father. Aatram was a 'vastad' (master) in politics who always kept one move up his sleeve and played it at the right moment. Like the vastad, Aatram doesn't teach everything to his pupil.”
With PTI inputs