Shocked by the disastrous show in the Lok Sabha elections in Maharashtra, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader and Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar expressed his belief that the party will pull out all stops to regain public trust that was lost during the elections.
He was speaking in a press conference on Thursday night after meeting his MLAs at Trident Hotel. All MLAs except five were present at the meeting. Narhari Zirwal was in abroad and four others were unwell so they did not attend the meeting, he clarified.
“After speaking to the MLAs, we have made notes and will take decisions accordingly. We have humbly accepted the public mandate and we will put our best efforts to regain their trust,” Pawar said.
Refuting the reports of NCP MLAs returning to Sharad Pawar's camp after the poll debacle, the Pawar Junior clarified, “There is no truth in the news that our MLAs are in contact with the opposition. All the MLAs are with us.”
Pawar also expressed surprise over the results in the Baramati Lok Sabha Constituency. “I was shocked by the results of Baramati where I have been working for many years. No matter which election, Baramatikars always extended their support and showered immense affection. I don't know what happened this time.”
Asserting there would be detailed introspection of the party's poll performance, Ajit Pawar said some of the reasons included Muslims moving away from the ruling alliance, the Opposition's allegations of change in the Constitution, which alienated the Dalits and backward classes, as well as the Maratha quota protest.
Meanwhile, speaking to reporters in Delhi, Pawar said that the offer of Devendra Fadnavis to resign as deputy chief minister over the BJP's poor performance in the state was not discussed at the NDA meeting in Delhi.
He asserted that the offer by Fadnavis to quit as Deputy CM is an internal matter of the BJP and there was no reason for it to be discussed at the NDA meeting in Delhi.
Ajit Pawar-led NCP contested four seats in Lok Sabha elections and could only win the Raigad seat.
According to sources, the MLAs fear that they will lose the upcoming assembly election if the Sharad Pawar group continue to keep the upper hand.
One MLA said that it was wrong to blame Ajit Pawar for the poor performance of the party. “Not only NCP, but other alliance parties also underperformed. Even the BJP, which contested 28 seats, could win only nine seats. Therefore, the responsibility of gaining a few seats is collective, not individual.”
He also added that Maratha agitation, farmers' MSP issue and late distribution of tickets are some of the reasons for Mahayuti's poor performance in the state.
