Baramati MP and NCP’s recently appointed working president Supriya Sule has broken the silence of reports of senior leader Ajit Pawar being “upset” with party patriarch Sharad Pawar’s recent decision. Pawar had appointed his daughter Supriya as Nationalist Congress Party working president along with Rajya Sabha MP Praful Patel.
Terming the reports of rift in NCP as “gossip”, Sule dismissed speculation around Ajit Pawar not being happy with her elevation. Pawar’s decision was seen as virtually sidelining nephew Ajit Pawar, who is known to have rebellious streaks. Sule reacted to the media reports of rift with Ajit Pawar and opposition’s allegations of dynastic politics.
“This is all gossip. Dada (Ajit Pawar) is Leader of Opposition in the state (Assembly). His position is equivalent to that of the chief minister. BJP is trying to target Ajit Pawar...Sometimes they target me,” she said.
Ajit Pawar was seen as Sharad Pawar’s heir-apparent. However, his past alliances with the BJP were not well received by NCP. This includes his early morning swearing-in as Maharashtra deputy chief minister along with CM Devendra Fadnavis in 2019.
On allegations of dynastic politics, Sule said, “Yes, there is dynastic politics and I am extremely proud that I am a daughter of Sharad Pawar and Pratibha Pawar. I received the Sansad Ratna award not because I am the daughter of Sharad Pawar, but because of the work I am doing in Parliament.”
“After the appointment (as the working president), I will now report to Prafulbhai (Patel) and Sharad Pawar. Rather, NCP is a party where we believe in democracy, it's not like a corporate office,” she added.
(Inputs from PTI)
