Pawar, Chavan engage in war of words

Just two days after they advised their party leaders to show restraint and not launch personal attacks on their colleagues from parties in the alliance, a war of words broke out between chief minister Prithviraj Chavan and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar.

Just two days after they advised their party leaders to show restraint and not launch personal attacks on their colleagues from parties in the alliance, a war of words broke out between chief minister Prithviraj Chavan and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar.

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Chavan, who had criticised Pawar in a television interview earlier, attacked the NCP supremo on the same issue on Sunday, at a public rally in Osmanabad. In a veiled reference to Pawar, he said: "Some people became big in politics because of Congress and then chose to form a separate party owing to personal ambition. This has come at a loss to Maharashtra."

While the Congress and the NCP are contesting as allies in several municipalities during the upcoming civic polls, including Mumbai, they are pitted against in each other in some others.

In the Osmanabad local elections, they are each other's main opponents.

On Friday, Pawar had reacted to the CM's earlier remark, saying: "NCP consists of self-made leaders who work among the masses and have been elected by them. They are not nominated or deputed and they don't look North for directives."

He had also ridiculed Chavan when asked for his opinion on the CM's comment that Congress would form a government on its own strength in 2014. "I don't think one should give too much importance to comments made by someone who has not been elected directly by the people."