NCP state president Sunil Tatkare
NCP working president Praful Patel
Amid the differences within the NCP’s top leadership, party chief Sunetra addressed over 30 lawmakers last week. Following the meeting, Patel said he would meet Pawar again after Nov 10, when political discussions could take place. Merger talks had come to a halt following the death of former deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar in a plane crash on Jan 28.
There was no discussion on the proposed merger, according to those who attended the meeting. We expect a meeting between the MLAs and the core committee members to be held in Mumbai after the Diwali festival ,” another MLA said. State NCP president Sunil Tatkare had then said no merger discussions were taking place between the two factions. He changed his stance a few days ago and said he was aware of the parleys and the merger would have taken place by now had Ajit Pawar been alive. Reacting to Tatkare’s statement, NCP national spokesperson Umesh Patil said the state party president’s remarks were contradictory. The media should ask him what prompted him to change his stance,” Patil said. Speaking about the merger proposal, Patil said it was easier said than done.
Speculations gained momentum after NCP working president Praful Patel last week met NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar , then admitted to Mumbai’s Breach Candy Hospital. Subsequently, Sunetra’s elder son and Rajya Sabha member Parth Pawar met his granduncle Sharad Pawar twice in two days in Mumbai. “With confusion growing within the party, we want our senior leaders to convene another meeting of all MLAs and address our concerns. As he is the state president of our party, we cannot seek an explanation from him. He claimed that implementing such a move would upset several party members, from the top leadership to the grassroots level.
“There has been a complete shift in his (Tatkare’s) earlier stand on the merger issue.