Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) has said its supremo Sharad Pawar will remain with the INDIA bloc at the national level and the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance in Maharashtra.
The party’s reaction comes after Amravati MLA Ravi Rana claimed that the NCP chief would join hands with the BJP in the next 15-20 days.
"Whoever claims that our party chief Sharad Pawar will join hands with BJP does not warrant a response. Our party chief will remain with the INDIA bloc and Maha Vikas Aghadi. He is at the forefront of bringing all opposition parties together. The opposition is heavily banking on him to throw the BJP out of power. Our party chief will never follow an ideology which is dangerous for the nation. He is making all efforts so that the BJP is ousted from power in 2024 elections,” Mahesh Tapase, spokesperson of the Sharad Pawar-led NCP was quoted by IE as having said.
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Earlier, Rana who is an independent MLA supporting the BJP, said, ”In state (Maharashtra) and at the Centre, a strong BJP government will emerge with the participation of Sharad Pawar.”
"I prayed before the Lord that Sharad Pawar should join hands with Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the sake of the country’s progress. A miracle is going to happen in the next 15-20 days. I am confident soon there will be a strong BJP government in Maharashtra and Delhi with support from Sharad Pawar,” Rana had said reportedly.
However, Shiv Sena (UBT), part of the MVA, rubbished Rana’s claim.
“Did Ravi Rana get permission from Devendra Fadnavis before making such a statement? If this is true, then it is clear that the BJP is indulging in breaking parties only for power,” said Sena (UBT) spokesperson Aher, as per the report.
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Congress also criticised Rana’s claim.
“These are people paid by the BJP to make such statements. The formation of the INDIA bloc shakes the BJP. It cannot comprehend how to tackle the strong force called the INDIA bloc. Therefore, it is trying to cause disturbance in the INDIA bloc through such baseless and meaningless statements. Sharad Pawar has a strong ideology. He has always backed people from different strata of society, unlike the BJP, which has an ideology of dividing people. Sharad Pawar follows the ideology, principles and values cherished by Mahatma Gandhi. He will never toe the (Nathuram) Godse line, which belongs to the BJP,”Congress spokesperson Gopal Tiwari was quoted as having said.
