By Arun Srivastava
Ajit Pawar, nephew of Sharad Pawar, joining the bandwagon of Prime Minister Narendra Modi — just after five days of his being described publicly as the most corrupt politician of Maharashtra, by none else but by Modi, at a public rally in Bhopal on June 27 — has not come as surprise. It has also not come as an insolent shock that Modi who while claiming that a net amount of Rs 70,000 cores has been stolen by the Maharashtra politicians, had “guaranteed” to the people at his rally that they would not be spared, emphasising that it was “the guarantee being given to you by Modi”, welcomed the very same “corrupt” Ajit Pawar into the BJP camp.
Like his all the past promises and guarantees, Modi preferred to ignore his Bhopal guarantee and allowed the ‘scamsters’ to pass through the now legendary “BJP washing machine” and turn them into purified souls. Of course, the silence of the flagbearer of Indian morality, Indian ethos and Indian traditions, Mohan Bhagwat, on the immoral actions of Modi speaks volumes. Bhagwat’s silence sends the strong message that Modi has got the tacit support of the RSS leadership that is primarily concerned with the expansion of saffron ecosystem.
Modi had engineered defections and splits in Goa, Maharashtra, Assam and in other states for placing and retaining BJP in power in these states. But what conjured him to inspire Ajit Pawar to defect is really intriguing. BJP has a strong government in Maharashtra. Is it that the threat of incumbent chief minister Eknath Shinde hanging on his head, or the danger of disqualification of 16 MLAs of Shinde faction staring at his face, that Modi decided to bring Ajit Pawar in? Or, does Modi intend to keep Sharad Pawar confined in his home state, making him unavailable for promoting the opposition unity?
Only a week back, Sharad Pawar had announced that the second opposition meet would be held in Karnataka. Even the insiders point put that this shift was made at the suggestion of Pawar. Though the threat of landslide and floods has apparently been the major factor, the major stirring feature has been to check the spread of BJP in south. RSS and BJP have already launched vicious attacks on Tamil Nadu and Telangana. The idea of having the second meet in Karnataka was floated by Pawar. This has enraged Modi and Amit Shah.
Even BJP sources confide that splitting the NCP was a revenge action. That Ajit Pawar has been constant touch with Amit Shah was a known secret in the NCP circle. Even Sharad Pawar was aware of his activities. But he was simply buying time. This is the reason why the NCP supremo Sharad Pawar remains unfazed. On the contrary, he expressed gratitude to Modi after Ajit Pawar, defected to become the Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra. He even took a jibe at Modi saying that his allegations of corruption against the NCP have been proven baseless, now that his party has formed an alliance with those accused.
Sharad Pawar said that PM Modi had hurled allegations of corruption against the Congress-NCP alliance. “Today, his party has joined hands and sworn-in (as Ministers) some people from the same party against whom Modi had pointed fingers. This means that Modi’s allegations were baseless and we are now ‘absolved’ of all the charges. I am thankful to him for this… I am happy for those facing enquiries who have taken oath today,” he said.
The sources also maintain that in recent days, Ajit Pawar and his supporters were creating pressure on Sharad Pawar to do something to protect them from the torture and repression let lose by the ED and CBI. On his part, Sharad Pawar was reluctant to take their case with Modi, as it would have politically finished him. ED’s mayhem has been a major factor is borne out from the observation of Sharad Pawar, who after Ajit’s desertion put the blame at the feet of the Enforcement Directorate for his nephew move to become the state’s deputy Chief Minister. In fact, Pawar knew of the coercive methods used by the ED to bully the MLAs.
Intensity of Modi’s design to ruin Sharad Pawar could be gauged from the simple fact that Modi did not bother even for a moment to allow Ajit to enter into the coalition. This he did in the face of the present Shiv Sena and BJP coalition engaged in bitter acrimony. Moreover, posters eulogising the achievements of Shinde government had appeared in Mumbai, which do not carry the photo of Devendra Fadnavis. The running feud between Shinde and Fadnavis has yet another feature for non-induction of ten Shiv Sena MLAs in the government. They have been waiting for their turn ever since the Shinde government took office.
In sharp contrast, the supporters of Ajit Pawar were sworn in as ministers just within moments of their joining the Modi bandwagon. This has given rise intense bickering in the coalition. Some close aides of Shinde have cautioned him against this move of the BJP leadership. They apprehend that was a move to marginalise Shinde. Obviously, as the deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar would have major say in the running of the government. This would overlap the power and functioning of Shinde.
Yet another factor that has turned the supporters of Shinde jittery is Modi’s move to penetrate into the Maratha voters. Enjoying the legacy of Sharad Pawar, his nephew could be the best pawn for Modi to accomplish his mission. In this backdrop, Modi will allow him some freehand which will eventually hurt the interest of Shinde and constricted his area of operation.
Taking a cue from the Supreme Court observation, the party chief intends to take legal action these defectors but he is not in hurry. What has hurt Sharad Pawar most is the betrayal of the NCP Working President Praful Patel and General Secretary Sunil Tatkare – whom he had appointed on June 10 but both switched over to Ajit Pawar’s side – for not fulfilling their responsibilities properly that led to the split. Nevertheless he is confident rebuilding the party. He said; “We shall rebuild the party now… There is no second level now. You will soon see new leaders who are concerned about the state and country coming to the fore in the party”.
Meanwhile, NCP State chief Jayant Patil made it known that they have moved a disqualification petition to Maharashtra Assembly Speaker Rahul Narwekar against the nine MLAs who were sworn in as ministers in the Shinde-Fadnavis government on July 2. “He said; We have submitted a disqualification petition to Speaker. Despite my repeated calls, Narwekar did not respond, so I sent him a text message asking him to check his WhatsApp and email where we have sent the petition.” The party also appointed Jitendra Awhad as LoP in place of Ajit Pawar.
Nevertheless the experts and political commentators feel that with this development Maharashtra has entered into the phase of political instability. Induction of Ajit Pawar would witness emergence of three power centres. Though Fadnavis has preferred to toe his leaders line, an apprehension is being expressed that some of Shinde’s supporters may throw their weight behind Ajit. It is alleged that some of the MLAs who changed side along with Shinde have been known supporters of Ajit. Now since Ajit has joined the government, they will not have any problem in identifying openly with Ajit Pawar.
Amidst the gloomy political scenario, a strong rumour is making rounds the political circle that NCP led by Sharad Pawar may merge with Congress. On its part the Congress leadership is ready to give him a rousing welcome. However Sharad Pawar said yesterday, after the desertion; “Whatever has happened is not new to me…It might be new to some people. From tomorrow itself, I will start touring Maharashtra and start rebuilding the party…I am not worried about what has happened.”
In fact, some BJP leaders are sceptical of Ajit and colleagues getting welcome response from the NCP rank and file. The supporters look at Sharad as the symbol of Maratha aspiration. His observation: “Some of those who were present at the swearing in ceremony had contacted me. They told me that they were invited for the ceremony and their signatures were taken. They clarified that their stand is different…I am not going to say anything about it now. Whatever they are saying, they should place it before the people. And only then will I agree that they have taken a different stand.” This is a sturdy warning to his detractors. (IPA Service)
The post Sharad Pawar Emerging As Potential Threat Has Unnerved Modi-Led BJP first appeared on IPA Newspack.