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Sharad Pawar loyalist met Amit Shah? NCP's Jayant Patil says ‘last night I was…’
Maharashtra NCP president Jayant Patil denies secret meeting with Amit Shah, says he was at Sharad Pawar's residence.
Maharashtra NCP president Jayant Patil dismissed the reports that claimed he secretly met Union home minister Amit Shah and said he was at the residence of party supremo Sharad Pawar.
When asked about the rumours about him meeting Amit Shah, Patil said, “Who told you this? You should ask those who are saying all this. Last evening I was there at the residence of Sharad Pawar... I have not met anyone...”
Patil said he later met senior colleagues Anil Deshmukh, Rajesh Tope and Sunil Bhusara at his home.
"They were at my house till 1.30 am. I met Sharad Pawar again this morning. Those who spread these rumours should answer at what time I met Shah in Pune and show proof. I am always with Sharad Pawar. Such speculations should stop," Patil, who heads the Maharashtra NCP unit, told reporters.
Shah arrived at Pune airport on Saturday evening where he was received by Maharashtra chief minister Eknath Shinde, deputy CM Ajit Pawar and minister Chandrakant Patil. The home minister was in Pune to launch the digital portal of the Central Registrar of Cooperative Societies (CRCS) office in Pune on Sunday.
Speculations have been rife about legislative party leader and NCP's state unit chief Jayant Patil joining the Ajit Pawar camp, especially after Jayant Patil (Pawar faction) and Sunil Tatkare (Ajit faction) were seen joking and chatting in the legislature premises.
The Election Commission of India has begun the process of taking a decision on the Ajit faction’s claim on the NCP party and election symbol. These are the indications that the things may start heating up again. Of course, there could be
Recently, Sharad Pawar shared the dais with Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a function organised by Tilak Smarak Samiti in Pune which didn't go well with Shiv Sena (UBT) and Congress. The editorial in the Shiv Sena (UBT) mouthpiece 'Saamana' said that Pawar could have stayed away from the event "to clear doubts about him."
The 'Saamana' editorial claimed that Modi accused the NCP of corruption and then engineered a split in the party and muddied the politics in Maharashtra.
“Still, Sharad Pawar will welcome Modi and this has not gone down well with some people. This was a good opportunity for Pawar to turn his back on the programme and clear the doubts about him among people,” the Marathi daily said.
Former Maharashtra chief minister Ashok Chavan said such incidents lead to confusion and Pawar should make his position clear. “I don't think participating in such events is wrong. (But) All important opposition parties have come under the banner of INDIA alliance. Such incidents create an atmosphere of confusion," the Congress leader said. "If a senior leader like Pawar makes his position clear then it will be much better,” Chavan said.
