Sharad Ritrement

I’m Not Retired, I’m On Fire: Sharad

Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) Chief Sharad Pawar on Saturday replied to Ajit Pawar’s retirement remark against him and said that he is neither tired nor retired. He is dedicated to his party, Sharad Pawar said.

Replying to Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister’s remark on Sharad Pawar’s age, the latter said at a press conference, “I’m not tired, I’m not retired, I’m on fire.”
Maharashtra Deputy CM Ajit Pawar on Wednesday said that his uncle and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) president Sharad Pawar should step down and give a chance to the new generation stating that even leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) retire at the age of 75.

“I still have deep respect for him (Sharad Pawar)…But you tell me, IAS officers retire at 60…even in politics – BJP leaders retire at 75. You can see the example of LK Advani and Murli Manohar Joshi…That allows the new generation to rise…” Ajit Pawar had said.

“You (Sharad Pawar) give us your blessings…You are 83, aren’t you going to stop?…Give us your blessings and we will pray that you live a long life,” said the Deputy chief minister while addressing party legislators and other workers in Bandra on Wednesday.

Replying to this, NCP Sharad Pawar said that he is neither tired nor retired.

NCP Working President Supriya Sule also took to Twitter and quoted Sharad Pawar, ” Bhaag gaye Ranchhod sabhi, dekh abhi tak khadaa hoon main. Na thaka hoon na haara hoon, rann mein atal khadaa hoon mai” translated as “All of them ran away from the war, I am still standing. I am neither tired or retired standing here and fighting my war.”

In May this year Sharad Pawar announced that he would step down as the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) national president but later took back his decision after protests.

During his address on Saturday, Sharad Pawar also said that all the rebels of the party would be disqualified.

Sharad Pawar also replied that he gave powers to his daughter Supriya Sule. He said that the party workers wanted Supriya to come into politics.

“Party workers wanted that Supriya Sule come to politics, she fought Lok Sabha polls and won. We gave Union Minister post to Praful Patel for 10 years. He lost the Lok Sabha election, after that, we gave him a Rajya Sabha seat,” Sharad Pawar said. (ANI)

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I Am Working.. No Matter I Am 82 Or 92: Pawar

Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar asserted that his effectiveness remains unchanged regardless of whether he is 82 or 92 years old.

“I am still effective, whether I am 82 or 92,” said Sharad Pawar after the party’s National Executive meeting in Delhi while responding to recent remarks made by his nephew, Ajit Pawar who took a veiled swipe at his age.
Ajit Pawar’s comment stirred discontent among party members and loyalists, triggering a series of reactions.

Ajit Pawar had indirectly blamed Sharad Pawar, who is 82 years old, for the NCP’s missed opportunity to have a Chief Minister in Maharashtra despite having the support of a majority of MLAs in 2014.

Asserting that he is still the president of the party Sharad Pawar added that “I am the president of NCP.”

“Today’s meeting helped boost our morale…I am the president of NCP,” he said as he presided over a crucial national executive meeting in New Delhi.

Sharad Pawar further said that, now, whatever we need to say, we will say it before the Election Commission of India.

While sources revealed that Election Commission has received a petition from Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar staking claim to Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and the party symbol.

The sources said the Election Commission has also received a caveat from Jayant Patil, who is with the Sharad Pawar group. He also informed the panel that they have initiated a disqualification process against nine MLAs who joined the Eknath Shinde-BJP government in the state on Sunday.

The politics of Maharashtra is on the boil since Sunday as senior NCP leader Ajit Pawar took oath as the deputy chief minister of the state. Ajit Pawar joined the Eknath Shinde-led Maharashtra government with 8 other MLAs and has claimed control over the Nationalist Congress Party. (ANI)

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Pawar NCP Meet

Pawar Leaves For Delhi To Attend NCP National Executive Meet

Amid Maharashtra political crisis, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Sharad Pawar on Thursday left for Delhi where he has called a National Executive meeting.

Meanwhile, posters saying “In the fight of truth and lie, the entire country is with Sharad Pawar” and “India’s history is such that it has never forgiven those who have betrayed” come up outside NCP chief Sharad Pawar’s residence in Delhi.

However, later it was removed by the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC).

With the NCP witnessing the unravelling of the party, the Pawar family feud played out on stage on Wednesday as NCP factions headed by Sharad Pawar and his nephew held rival meetings at Yashwantrao Chavan Centre in south Mumbai and in Bhujbal Knowledge City in suburban Bandra, respectively.

While sources revealed that Election Commission has received a petition from Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar staking claim to Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and the party symbol.

The sources said the Election Commission has also received a caveat from Jayant Patil, who is with the Sharad Pawar group. He also informed the panel that they have initiated a disqualification process against nine MLAs who joined the Eknath Shinde-BJP government in the state on Sunday.

The politics of Maharashtra is on the boil since Sunday as senior NCP leader Ajit Pawar took oath as the deputy chief minister of the state. Ajit Pawar joined the Eknath Shinde-led Maharashtra government with 8 other MLAs and has claimed control over the Nationalist Congress Party.

On Wednesday, Ajit Pawar took a veiled dig at his uncle Sharad Pawar regarding his age that left the NCP Supremo’s party members and loyalists fuming and resulted into a chain of reactions.

Ajit Pawar urged Sharad Pawar to step down and give a chance to the new generation stating that even leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) retire at the age of 75.

The junior Pawar also has blamed the 82-year-old Sharad Pawar for NCP losing out on the chance to have a chief minister of Maharashtra despite having the support of a majority of MLAs in the year 2014.

“You portrayed me as a villain in front of everyone. I still have deep respect for him (Sharad Pawar)…But you tell me, IAS officers retire at 60…even in politics – BJP leaders retire at 75. You can see the example of LK Advani and Murli Manohar Joshi…That allows the new generation to rise…”

“You (Sharad Pawar) give us your blessings…The other day, he went to YB Chavan memorial…I have also been there…but you are 83, aren’t you going to stop?…Give us your blessings and we will pray that you live a long life,” said the Deputy chief minister while addressing party legislators and other workers in Bandra here.

Later in the day, NCP’s working president Supriya Sule in a stern response asked the deputy CM not to disrespect her father. “Disrespect us, but not our father (Sharad Pawar). This fight is against the Bharatiya Janata Party government. BJP is the most corrupt party in the country,” said Sule in Mumbai on Wednesday.

“I saw 2019 elections, this 84-year-old man fought and won, age is just a number,” Sule said further.

Meanwhile, Anil Deshmukh, NCP leader and a loyalist Sharad Pawar also came for rescue and ended up calling his party chief a “Lion” and said, “82 saal ka sher abhi bhi zinda hai,” (82-year-old Lion is still alive). (ANI)

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Women's Reservation Bill

Supriya Seeks Disqualification Of Patel, Tatkare For Anti-Party Activities

Nationalist Congress Party working President Supriya Sule on Monday wrote to Party Supremo Sharad Pawar to disqualify MP and Party Members Praful Patel and Sunil Tatkare for allegedly indulging in anti-party activities.

“I write with great urgency to inform you that two Members of Parliament, Praful Patel and Sunil Tatkare…have indulged in anti-party activities by facilitating and spearheading the swearing of the oath of nine MLAs as Cabinet Ministers of Government of Maharashtra,” Supriya Sule wrote to Sharad Pawar.
“They have further openly made statements to this effect before the media and have acted in complete violation of the Party’s direction and principles. You may further be informed that this decision of the two Members of Parliament to support the nine MLAs has been taken without the permission of the Party President and without taking all members of the party into confidence,” she wrote further.

Sule requested NCP President Sharad Pawar to take immediate steps against them including filing of disqualification petitions.

“I therefore request you to take immediate steps against them including filing of disqualification petitions,” she demanded in the letter to NCP President Sharad Pawar

She also took to Twitter and wrote, “Sunil Tatkare and Praful Patel on 2nd July 2023 acted in direct contravention of the Party Constitution and Rules, amounting to desertion and disqualification from the party membership. I request Hon. @PawarSpeaks Saheb to take immediate action and file disqualification petitions under the 10th Schedule of the Constitution of India before the Competent Authority against Members of Parliament- Mr. Praful Patel and Mr. Sunil Tatkare for engaging in anti-party activities.”

The Nationalist Congress Party experienced an internal division as senior leader Ajit Pawar joined the BJP-led Eknath Shinde government.

Ajit Pawar took oath as Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister with eight other party legislators also joining the National Democratic Alliance government in the State.

On Sunday Ajit Pawar claimed that all MLAs are with him and they have joined the Shiv Sena-BJP government as a party.

“We have all the numbers. All MLAs are with me. We are here as a party. We have informed all seniors also. The majority is given importance in a democracy. Our party is 24 years old and young leadership should come forward,” Ajit Pawar said after taking oath as Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra. (ANI)

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Sharad Pawar Nitish Kumar

Sharad, Nitish Plan Joint Oppo Fight Against BJP

Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) national president Sharad Pawar on Thursday met with Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar in Mumbai and the two leaders stressed on the need for opposition parties to work together in the interest of the nation.

Addressing a joint press conference with Kumar the veteran NCP leader said, “In the wake of the situation in the country, to save democracy, it is important to work together. After looking at the condition of the country, it seems that if we work together, there will be support for the alternative that the country needs.
“Yesterday, there were polls in Karnataka. As per my information, people there will oust BJP and elect a secular government”, Pawar said.

Addressing the joint press conference, the Bihar chief minister lashed out at the BJP.

“What the BJP is doing, is not in the country’s interest. So, the more the number of Opposition parties comes together, the better it is in the interest of the nation. We have spoken with several political parties. We will sit together and take further decisions,” Kumar said.

Asked if Sharad Pawar will be the main face of an Opposition alliance, the Bihar CM said, “There will be nothing more delightful than that…I have told him that he has to work strongly not only for his party but the entire country.”

Nitish Kumar who is also the JD(U) leader accompanied by Bihar deputy chief minster and RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav also met with Uddhav Thackeray at ‘Matoshree’ in Mumbai.

The JD(U) leader has been meeting Opposition leaders to strengthen the bloc against the BJP ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.

Kumar had caught the national imagination with his pitch for a “united opposition” which, he believes, can take on and defeat the BJP in next year’s Lok Sabha polls. The JD(U) supreme leader, who stunned the BJP last year when he snapped ties will visit Nationalist Congress Party Chief Sharad Pawar later in the day.

In his joint presser with Uddhav Thackeray today the Bihar chief minister speaking on a United Opposition candidate said, “This exercise is not done to advance their personal advance but for the good of the country and to give the people of India a good alternative to the present government.”

Kumar said that a decision on the candidate will be decided after the formation of the United Front and not before that.

“Those who are at the Centre are not working for the country…All political parties in the country need to unite to work together,” the Bihar chief minister said. (ANI)

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Sharad Pawar slammed Koshiyari

Governor Crossed All Limits: Pawar Slams Koshyari Over Remarks On Shivaji

Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar on Thursday slammed Bhagat Singh Koshiyari over his remarks on Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and said that Maharashtra Governor has crossed “all limits”.

He further sought intervention from PM Modi on the matter.
While addressing a press conference, Pawar said “The Governor has crossed all limits. The President and the Prime Minister should intervene in this matter. It is wrong to give big posts to people who make irresponsible statements.”

Moreover, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj’s descendant and Raja Sabha MP Udayanraje Bhonsle wrote a letter to President Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi over his remarks on the Maratha warrior demanding the Governor to be sacked from his post.

“The statements made by the governor and the spokesperson of BJP are very contradictory to the beliefs of the nation it would only be appropriate if you could take measures to remove Governor of Maharashtra. Your actions and deliberations in resolving this current standoff would go miles in restoring the confidence of the people of Maharashtra and the nation, that you stand in solidarity with the people’s belief and faith in Chh. Shivaji Maharaj. Thanking you,” read the letter.

Notably, Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari on November 19 stoked a fresh controversy by calling Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj an ‘old idol’.

Addressing a function at Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Marathwada University in Aurangabad on Saturday, the Maharashtra Governor said, “If someone asks who your idol is, you don’t have to go out looking for one. You will find them right here in Maharashtra. Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj has become an old idol now, you can find new ones — from Babasaheb Ambedkar to Union Minister Nitin Gadkari.”

The statement sparked a massive furore and drew censure from Maratha organisations and Opposition leaders alike.

Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj is an emotive and iconic figure in Maharashtra, transcending political affiliations, and the governor’s remark on the Maratha warrior did not go down well with leaders. It sparked a massive furore and drew censure from Maratha organisations and Opposition leaders alike. (ANI)

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NCP Bharat Jodo Yatra

Sena, NCP To Join Bharat Jodo Yatra In Maharashtra

Shiv Sena Chief and former Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) President Sharad Pawar have accepted the invitation to take part in the Bharat Jodo Yatra, said a Congress leader on Monday.

A delegation of state Congress leaders on Monday met former CM Uddhav Thackeray at his residence ‘Matoshree’ and Sharad Pawar at Silver Oak and invited them for the yatra.
Congress leaders including HK Patil, Ashok Chavan, Balasaheb Thorat, Naseem Khan, Bhai Jagtap, and youth leader Suraj Thakur were present in the meeting.

The Bharat Jodi Yatra started by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi will enter Maharashtra from the Nanded district in the first week of November and the Congress delegation invited both leaders to participate in the yatra.

“Both have accepted the invitation and the delegation was told that Sharad Pawar himself and Shiv Sena’s Uddhav Thackeray or Aaditya Thackeray would be involved in the yatra,” the Congress official said in a statement.

Bharat Jodo Yatra is getting support from various political parties and social organizations across the country and the response is increasing day by day. In Maharashtra too, the NCP and Shiv Sena (Thackeray faction) have agreed to participate in the yatra, adding to its importance. The Bharat Jodo Yatra reached a milestone on Saturday covering 1000 kilometres after starting from Kanyakumari, the southernmost tip of the Indian subcontinent launched on 7 September 2022.

The 3500 kilometres yatra will be a historic event for the Congress and the entire country. It is the longest march on foot by any Indian politician in the history of India, the Congress said earlier in a statement.

Notably, Mahatma Gandhi’s Dandi march was the longest march by foot (389 kilometres in 24 days) between Sabarmati ashram to Dandi (Navasari) in Gujarat state.

The Bharat Jodo Yatra will reach this milestone (1000 kilometres) when it reaches the outskirts of Ballari district, where a massive convention will happen with lakhs of Congress supporters, the party said in its release. (ANI)

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Who Can Challenge The Modi Regime In India?

The origin of the acronym, TINA (or There is No Alternative) is credited to the late British Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher, the Conservative Party leader who was in office from 1979 to 1990. Thatcher used it as a slogan to lend credence to her belief that there was no alternative to a market economy where free trade and free markets were the only way to build and distribute wealth. Later, the phrase “TINA factor” was appropriated by Indian political commentators who have used it to describe situations where one powerful party or head of government seems so strong that there seems to be virtually no alternative to replace him or her.

Famously, the phrase was used for the late Indira Gandhi who was the second longest-serving Prime Minister of India (she served from January 1966 to March 1977 and again from January 1980 until her assassination in October 1984). More recently, even as the present Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi, is serving his second term, the phrase has been cropping up again with various political analysts speculating whether there is a TINA factor at work and whether there is in reality no alternative to Modi.

With the near decimation of the only other significant national party, the Indian National Congress, which after decades of being in power, is now reduced to holding a mere 52 of the 543 seats in the Lok Sabha; and 36 of the 245 seats in the Rajya Sabha, the question of whether the Modi-led, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-dominant regime has anyone to challenge it in elections. In addition, the BJP, or alliances in which it participates, is part of the government in 18 of India’s 31 states and Union Territories and the party has publicly proclaimed its mission to have a “Congress-free” India.

In the absence of a comparably strong and cohesive party to challenge the BJP at the national level, the alternative in the form of a challenger could, at least theoretically, be a coalition of parties—strong regional ones or one that can be led by the Congress but comprising many smaller parties. Some political analysts have punted for the Mamata Banerjee-led All-India Trinamool Congress (AITC) as a possible key player in evolving a coalition of regional parties. That view has gained ground in the aftermath of the recent West Bengal elections in which despite the BJP’s deployment of a high-powered campaign, Ms. Banerjee comfortably cruised to victory, effectively retaining chief ministership for the third term.

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Stable coalition governments are common in many parts of the world, including, in particular, in Europe where in countries such as Switzerland, Finland, Belgium, Italy, and Germany, it is almost a given. In India, both at the national as well as the regional levels, coalitions are not novel arrangements. They have been tried but the outcomes, at least in terms of stability, have been mixed. Unless led by a single party that has a significant clout in terms of the number of seats it wins in Parliament, coalition governments have been short-lived in India. In 1996, after a fractured electoral verdict, when the BJP, led by the late Atal Bihari Vajpayee, emerged as the single largest party in Parliament and was invited to form a government and cobble together a majority (by wooing other smaller parties), it failed to do so and collapsed in 13 days.

It was replaced by the United Front, which was closest to a copybook version of a political coalition with 13 different parties coming together to form an alliance. The coalition formed two governments between 1996 and 1998, the first headed by Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda, and the second by I. K. Gujral. The United Front managed to stay in power for less than two years.

The current crisis in terms of finding a worthy challenger to the BJP is accentuated by the fact that the Indian National Congress’ strength has been getting dissipated over the past few years. Its leadership, which for all practical purposes, rests with the Nehru-Gandhi family, has been unable to provide either cohesion or expansion. Rahul Gandhi, who briefly became head of the party between 2017 and 2019 has been an enigmatic leader, often appearing reluctant or indecisive. In recent months, the party has witnessed an exodus of key young leaders, many of whom could have been groomed to lead the historic party whose origins go back to 1885. Many of these young leaders have left to actually join the BJP, the Congress’ arch rival.

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Partly it is hard to make the concept of a coalition government functional at India’s national level because of the nature of the nation. India is a pluralistic society that is like few others. The sheer diversity of a country with a population of 1.4 billion that is more like a continent made up of several “countries” is what makes things particularly difficult when it comes to forging alliances between different parties. The differences in languages, cultures, economic development, among several other parameters, is so wide-ranging that very often it is difficult for outsiders to grasp the enormity of the complex politics in the country. There are differences between regions (north and south, is an example); between states that can be neighbouring ones (each of the southern states has a different language); and between castes and gender.

Coalitions work better in countries where the population is small and less diverse. In Europe, governments made up by alliances of political parties with seemingly different views and ideologies have been comparably more stable than similar arrangements in India. Besides being easier to govern because of their size (some European countries have populations that are smaller than those of large Indian cities), the degree of plurality when it comes to ethnic diversity, cultures, language, and so on, is much smaller than those that exist in India.

To be sure, however, even the ruling BJP-led government is a coalition. Modi is the Prime Minister of a coalition government formed by the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), which comprises at least 14 different parties. Besides being united by ideology (most of the NDA’s constituents are right wing oriented), in the BJP it has a powerful leader: of the 334 seats in Lok Sabha that the NDA now controls, 301 are BJP members. That is the kind of strong glue that makes coalitions work in India. For regional parties, such as Ms. Banerjee’s AITC, it can be difficult to achieve a position where it can provide such a cohesive glue. The same goes for other regional parties such as, for example, the Samajwadi Party or the Bahujan Samaj Party in Uttar Pradesh; or the Rashtriya Janata Dal in Bihar. All of them have the potential to score electoral victories in their respective regions but have little political leverage when it comes to making it big on the national scene.