Ajit Pawar Refutes Reports He Demanded Top Post In Meet With Amit Shah

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar on Tuesday denied media reports of demands set forth by him during a meeting with Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday.

According to the reports, the NCP National President demanded implementation of the Bihar pattern in Maharashtra and making him chief minister after the Assembly elections slated for the second week of November.

Ajit Pawar also clarified that he never proposed to HM Shah a friendly fight on 25 seats.

"There is no truth in reports of a demand for the CM's post or friendly fight on 25 seats. During my meeting with Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday, I discussed a whole range of issues including problems faced by the cotton, soybean and onion growers.

"I made a strong appeal not to ban onion exports. If the farmers are getting more price from the sale of onions, they should get it. Although the Centre has increased the Fair and Remunerative Price (FRP), there has been no rise so far in Minimum Support Price (MSP). I strongly urged him to increase the MSP," he said.

To a question on media reports about the BJP staking claim on over 150 seats, Ajit Pawar said, "The seat sharing formula in the Mahayuti has not yet been finalised. After we fix it we will let you know the details."

The junior Pawar's denial came a day after Mr Shah had a marathon meeting with nine senior BJP leaders on Sunday night where they made a strong case for the party to contest at least 160 seats and continue playing the 'Big Brother's' role.

The party leaders also argued that after the BJP emerges as the single-largest party, it will be the natural claimant for the CM's post.

Besides, some of the leaders also appealed to HM Shah to leave seats for Shiv Sena and the NCP based on their strengths and winnability.

Further, Ajit Pawar said that the party has yet to take a decision on nominating its candidates for the three seats from its quota as the Governor's nominees to the Maharashtra Legislative Council.

He scoffed at media reports about the names of former MP Anand Paranjape, state women's commission chairperson Rupali Chakankar and party leader Siddharth Kamble as the party's choice for their nomination from the Governor's quota.

"I learnt these names from media reports. No names have been finalised yet," he said.

Ajit Pawar broke his silence over the objections raised by Shiv Sena ministers during the last Cabinet meeting for omitting Chief Minister Shinde's name from the Mukhyamantri Majhi Ladki Bahin Scheme and Dy CM Pawar taking credit for it.

"The Ladki Bahin scheme has been introduced by the Mahayuti government. Constituent parties in the Grand Alliance are trying to frame and promote these schemes in their own ways," he clarified.

To a question on the possibility of a third front contesting the Assembly election in the state, Ajit Pawar said, "There is talk of a third front. The possibility of a fourth front cannot be ruled out as everyone wants to be an MLA. People of all ages want to become MLAs. Finally, the Constitution has given everyone the right to fight elections. The people are supreme."
 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)