Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, along with some other ministers from his Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) faction met party supremo Sharad Pawar in Mumbai on Sunday.
This was the first meeting between Sharad Pawar and the Ajit Pawar faction, following his July 2 rebellion, when the latter joined the Eknath Shinde-led Maharashtra government.
Talking about the meeting, Praful Patel of the Ajit camp said that they had “come to take blessings of Sharad Pawar”, and added that they had come voluntarily and “without seeking his (Sharad Pawar’s) appointment.”
“We requested Sharad Pawar to keep the party united and guide us in near future. He did not reply to this. He quietly heard us all. We will participate in the assembly session to begin from tomorrow under the leadership of Ajit Pawar,” he said.
Ajit Pawar along with NCP ministers Hasan Mushrif, Chhagan Bhujbal, Aditi Tatkare and Dilip Walse Patil met the veteran politician at the at the Y B Chavan Centre located near the state secretariat ‘Mantralaya’.
Reportedly, NCP state president Jayant Patil and party leader Jitendra Awhad, who are from the Sharad Pawar camp, also reached the venue.
On Friday, Ajit Pawar was at the residence of Sharad Pawar, to meet Pratibha Pawar, the wife of Sharad Pawar, who underwent a hand surgery at a Mumbai hospital.
“We value family and traditions. Kaki (Pratibha Pawar) had some injury and was operated upon. I wanted to go in the afternoon, but could not go and therefore visited in the evening. Pawar saheb, kaki and Supriya (Sule) were there…There was no discussion on politics,” Ajit Pawar had told reporters.
The meeting comes in the backdrop of the recent Cabinet expansion, where Ajit Pawar was allocated over the key Finance and Planning portfolio in the Eknath Shinde-led Cabinet.