Cong MVA partner, issues should be resolved: Ajit Pawar

Senior NCP leader Ajit Pawar said on Thursday that the issues troubling the Maharashtra Congress should get resolved as it is one of the constituents of the Maha Vikas Aghadi, and condemned the alleged attack on Congress Legislative Council member Pradnya Satav.

MVA comprises the Uddhav Thackeray faction of the Shiv Sena, the Nationalist Congress Party and Congress.

Asked about a senior state Congress leader’s visit to Delhi amid infighting in the state unit, Pawar called it a good move and said there is a need to clear the air.

“We, as one of the constituents of MVA, feel that whatever confusion has been created within the Congress following some incidents, it should be cleared and the issue should be resolved,” said the former deputy chief minister.

The state Congress unit has been hit by a crisis, particularly after the MLC election to the Nashik graduates’ constituency, where senior leader Balasaheb Thorat’s nephew Satyajit Tambe won as an independent.

Days later, Thorat wrote to the Congress leadership citing his inability to work with state unit chief Nana Patole due to the latter's “anger” towards him. He also resigned as the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) chief.

Patole said he was unaware of Thorat’s move to step down as CLP chief. “He has not been speaking to us for the past few days. Maybe he is talking to the media,” he had said.

Pawar also condemned the alleged attack on MLC Satav, who is the wife of late Congress leader Rajeev Satav, in the Hingoli district. The MLC had said that an unknown person attacked her from behind on Wednesday and that there was a threat to her life. The police on Thursday arrested a 40-year-old in connection with the case.

Asked if the Eknath Shinde-BJP government was spending a lot on advertisements, Pawar sarcastically said this is the “government of the common people” and the common people won’t know about its work if advertisements are not brought out.

The NCP leader said a government must have its priorities right. “It is okay if money is spent on a marginalised section to elevate their standard of living. That is the job of the government," he said.

Addressing NCP workers here, Pawar asked them to ensure the victory of MVA-backed candidates in the Kasba and Pimpri-Chinchwad bypolls. “Concentrate on the bypolls. Consider it as the rehearsal for the civic elections,” he said.

Pawar said some leaders have acquired power at the centre by presenting the Gujarat model. “I did a mistake. I should have acquired power in the state by showcasing the Pimpri-Chinchwad model. It was not done that time, but now we can do it,” he added.