NCP patron Sharad Pawar on Friday said that there is no split in his Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and Ajit Pawar, who joined BJP-led Maharashtra government to become the deputy chief minister, is their leader. Pawar, who is part of the Congress-led Opposition alliance I.N.D.I.A, said that some leaders of the NCP took a different stance but that doesn’t mean the party has split.

“There is no conflict that he (Ajit Pawar) is our leader, there is no split in NCP. How does a split happen in a party? It happens when a big group separates from the party at the national level. But there is no such situation in NCP today. Yes, some leaders took a different stance but this can’t be called a split. They can do so in a democracy,” news agency ANI quoted Pawar as saying in Baramati.

Sharad Pawar creating confusion

Pawar’s statement has once again put the I.N.D.I.A. alliance in a tight spot. Several Opposition parties, including the Uddhav Thackeray faction of Shiv Sena and the Congress, have been demanding clarity on Pawar’s commitment to the alliance. Reacting to his statement, Shiv Sena-Uddhav said such remarks create confusion among MVA supporters in Maharashtra.

Sharad Pawar’s nephew Ajit Pawar had defied his uncle and joined the BJP-Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde faction)-led government in Maharashtra. While Sharad Pawar has been maintaining his stance of not joining the BJP, his latest statement has made it clear that he is not going to abandon his nephew Ajit Pawar either. This is likely to further complicate the situation for the I.N.D.I.A. alliance.

‘Some leaders joined BJP out of fear’

Earlier this month, the NCP patron had alleged that the Ajit Pawar faction of the NCP joined the BJP alliance for they were being threatened by central investigation agencies like the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and CBI.

“Some of our associates joined the BJP under the pressure of investigations by agencies. They were told if you join us (the BJP) then nothing will happen in your case but if you don’t join then you will be shown a different place (jail),” Pawar said while speaking at an event in Pune on August 20.

Four of the 9 NCP rebels – Sharad Pawar’s nephew Ajit Pawar, NCP heavyweights Praful Patel, Chhagan Bhujbal, and Hasan Mushrif were being investigated by the Enforcement Directorate in money laundering cases.