INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Within 10 days of 15 parties resolving in Patna that they would fight the 2024 Lok Sabha elections unitedly against the Bharatiya Janata
Party (BJP), Sharad Pawar-led Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) suffered a split on Sunday, with his nephew Ajit Pawar being sworn in as a
deputy chief minister in the BJP-Shiv Sena coalition government in Maharashtra.
Eight other NCP MLAs, including senior leader Chhagan
attended the oath-taking ceremony
The split in the NCP comes amid speculation of a reshuffle of the Union Cabinet where the BJP may give representation to several of its
allies, including those from Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena and the Ajit Pawar-led NCP faction
Elections to the 288-member state Assembly are due in October 2024.
The development was a jolt to the leadership of Sharad Pawar, who had
tried to prevent such an eventuality in May when he quit as party chief only to take back his resignation days later after party leaders and
rebuild the party and announced a party meeting on July 5
The Congress would also get its legislators together in a couple of days.
Sanjay Raut of the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena faction said
opposition parties, including that of the NCP leadership.
On June 10, on the 25th foundation day of the NCP, Sharad Pawar appointed Sule
and Patel as working presidents
While Sule was seen as the successor of 82-year-old party patriarch, Ajit -- who had run the party in Maharashtra and was the leader of the
opposition in the Maharashtra Assembly -- was not entrusted with any responsibility.
Addressing reporters after taking the oath, Ajit said
there was no split in the NCP and it would contest all future elections on the NCP's name and symbol
In Nagaland, the NCP decided its six MLAs would support the NDPP-BJP government
The Cabinet portfolios will be announced in a couple of days, he said.
Apart from Ajit and Bhujbal, others sworn in as ministers were Dilip
Walse Patil, Hasan Mushrif, Dhananjay Munde, Aditi Tatkare, Dharmarao Atram, Anil Patil, and Sanjay Bansode.
Maharashtra CM Shinde said:
The state will sprint (on the path of development)
Now, we have one CM and two deputy chief ministers
This will help faster development of the state," he told reporters
Sule was among the leaders present at the meeting but left early.
Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh said: "Clearly, the BJP's
washing machine has resumed its operations
A number of new entrants into the BJP-led alliance in Maharashtra today had been facing serious corruption charges with the ED, the CBI, and
Income Tax authorities after them
