NCP will break the alliance, if they don’t get 144 seats: Ajit Pawar
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- Category: Maharashtra Political News
- Last Updated: Thursday, 22 January 2015 21:00
NCP will break the alliance, if they don’t get 144 seats: Ajit Pawar
Infamous for his controversial remarks, Maharashtra deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar has now threatened the Congress that the NCP will break the alliance, if they don’t get 144 seats to contest the Maharashtra Assembly elections. “If we don’t get 144 seats from Congress, we will contest on all 288 seats of the Maharashtra Assembly,” Mr Pawar said, while addressing a gathering at Ahmednagar. He was accompanied by the newly-appointed state president Sunil Tatkare on Friday.
There has been a constant demand from the NCP leaders during their internal meetings to go alone in the elections, but this is for the first time that a senior leader of the party has declared such views openly. The deputy chief minister went on to say, “I feel that at least once all political parties of Maharashtra must contest elections on their own.” However, he quickly added that it was his personal opinion.
Political observers view his comment as an indication from the NCP for its workers to be ready to fight alone in the Assembly elections. Mr Pawar also claimed that he is being falsely implicated in the irrigation scam of the state. “I have no relation with the irrigation scam but malafide attempts have been made to tarnish my image,” the DCM stressed.
He then questioned the work done by the Raj Thackeray-led MNS in Nashik Municipal Corporation saying that the party should tell the people what exemplary work it has done so far. He also alleged that the BMC is bankrupt because of the ruling Shiv Sena.
Referring to the reservation announced by the state government for the Maratha and Muslim community in government jobs and education, Mr Pawar said that the government has taken due care before providing reservation to Maratha and Muslim community. “The reservation to them will not affect the reservation provided to OBCs,” he said.
He accused the Modi government at the Centre for not considering farmers’ needs. He asked why the Modi government had not increased the minimum support price for agricultural produce as per their assurance made during the election campaign. The alliance of Congress and NCP has been in power in Maharashtra for the last 15 years. Of them the ruling parties had jointly contested the Assembly elections twice.