Ajit Pawar appointed deputy CM, 8 other NCP MLAs take oath as ministers
Once again, Ajit Pawar has made waves in the political landscape. The recent swearing-in ceremony of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader. Sharad Pawar’s nephew as the deputy chief minister of Maharashtra. Under the leadership of Eknath Shinde, has grabbed significant attention.
Notably, it wasn’t just Ajit Pawar who took the oath; eight other NCP leaders. Including Chhagan Bhujbal, Dilip Walse Patil, Hasan Mushrif, Dhananjay Munde. And Aditi Tatkare, Dharmarao Atram, Anil Patil. Sanjay Bansode, also joined as ministers. This move orchestrated a vertical split within the party.
In response to his surprising swearing-in. Ajit Pawar expressed on Twitter that he took the oath of office. Secrecy as the Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra with the support of the people of Maharashtra. His colleagues in the Nationalist Congress Party. A strong belief in the welfare and development of the state.
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The Maharashtra Assembly Speaker, Rahul Narwekar, confirmed that Ajit Pawar has resigned as the Leader of Opposition in the Lower House. A resignation that has been accepted.
Interestingly, this is not the first time Ajit Pawar has made such a move. After the 2019 Maharashtra Assembly polls. He aligned with the BJP and assumed the position of deputy CM in a secretive ceremony. but their government lasted a mere 80 hours.
Ajit, the son of Pawar’s elder brother Anantrao. began to be seen alongside his uncle around 1991 and 1992. He rose to prominence when Pawar established the NCP and subsequently held various ministries. including irrigation, rural development, water resources, and finance.
Ajit developed a reputation for his ability to get things done and brought in a fresh wave of loyalists to the NCP.
The first signs of turmoil within the NCP emerged in 2004 when Ajit publicly criticized the party for relinquishing the chief ministership to the Congress. Despite the NCP emerging as the single-largest party in Maharashtra. This was due to Pawar’s demand for more Cabinet berths rather than the CM’s post.
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Consequently, Ajit was appointed as the deputy chief minister. Further tensions surfaced within the NCP with the entry of Pawar’s daughter, Supriya Sule, into politics in 2009. And again in 2019 when Pawar’s grandnephew, Rohit, decided to enter the political arena.
Simultaneously, Ajit desired his son, Parth, to contest the Lok Sabha polls from Maval. Although initially reluctant, the party eventually granted Parth a ticket. Which he lost by a significant margin of two lakh votes. This further strained the relationship between Pawar and Ajit. with the uncle disappointed by the party’s loss and the nephew feeling his son lacked adequate support.
In September 2019, Ajit resigned as a party legislator from Baramati, and in November 2019. he surprised everyone by taking oath as the deputy chief minister in the Devendra Fadnavis Cabinet. However, that government swiftly collapsed, leading Ajit to return to the NCP. with neither party publicly addressing the events that transpired.
With bigger ambitions in mind. Ajit openly expressed his desire to become the chief minister of Maharashtra in an April interview. As reported by the Hindustan Times. Party leaders Sunil Tatkare and Dilip Walse Patil echoed his sentiments. and party workers put up hoardings proclaiming Ajit as the future chief minister.
Rumors circulated that Ajit was preparing to switch to the BJP with
