Maharashtra Politics News Live Updates: Sharad Pawar expels Praful Patel, Sunil Tatkare and S R Kohli from NCP; says I am the president of party

Countering Ajit Pawar's swipes at his uncle Sharad Pawar over his advanced age, NCP MLA Jitendra Awhad on Wednesday said Pawar senior was not going to stop just because some people were asking him to do so. Ajit Pawar, who has rebelled against his uncle, asked in his speech at his faction's meeting in the morning when would Sharad Pawar, who is 82 years old, "going to stop". (PTI)

Uddhav Thackeray faction leader Sanjay Raut on Wednesday said Maharashtra chief minister Eknath Shinde may be replaced in the coming days in the wake of NCP leader Ajit Pawar and eight other MLAs joining the National Democratic Alliance government.

"The chief minister of Maharashtra may be changed in the coming days," he told ANI.

Taking potshots at the Eknath Shinde-Devendra Fadnavis Government, he said there are two deputy CMs and even the chief minister is not full but "doubtful"."There is a phrase. One full and two half," he said in a lighter vein. (ANI)

The induction of the NCP group led by Ajit Pawar in the Maharashtra cabinet has dented the prospects of ministerial aspirants from BJP and Shiv Sena leaving some of them upset and Chief Minister Eknath Shinde is aware of this feeling, Shiv Sena MP Gajanan Kirtikar said on Wednesday.

He claimed the Bharatiya Janta Party has set itself the target to win 350 seats in Lok Sabha elections and Maharashtra, which sends 48 members to Lok Sabha, is a crucial state for BJP to augment this tally.

With NCP coming on board, the target of winning 40-42 LS seats from Maharashtra can be achieved. After winning Lok Sabha (elections), the Assembly (polls) can be won easily, the Mumbai North West MP said.

"The scope of ministerial aspirants from BJP and Shiv Sena minimised after NCP joined the government. This has upset some MLAs. The chief minister is aware of this," Kirtikar, who shifted his loyalties to CM Shinde a few months ago, told PTI.

Discontent brews within the Shinde Sena faction as it expresses displeasure over the union with Ajit NCP faction. According to television reports, the Shinde Sena camp is scheduled to convene at the chief minister's residence.

Maharashtra deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar-led NCP has informed the Election Commission that he has been elected national president of the party. A statement issued on Wednesday on behalf of the Ajit Pawar-led faction said the Election Commission has been informed through an affidavit that he was elected NCP chief through a resolution dated June 30, 2023 signed by an "overwhelming majority" of members of NCP, both from the legislative and organisational wing. Praful Patel continues to be NCP working president, the release said. (PTI)

The AIMIM has suspended 23 workers, including six former corporators from Aurangabad, for not participating in a protest organised by the party in view of NCP leader Ajit Pawar's induction in the Maharashtra cabinet, a release said on Wednesday. The suspended workers were holding different posts in the All India Majlis-E-Ittehadul Muslimeen's Aurangabad unit.

According to the AIMIM release, 23 workers didn't attend the demonstration staged at Bhadkal Gate led by party MP Imtiaz Jaleel on Sunday night. (PTI)

Maharashtra deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar appeared to be ahead in the number game with more NCP MLAs supporting him than his uncle and party president Sharad Pawar as the warring factions held their separate meetings on Wednesday to show their strength, escalating the battle between them to control the outfit. As many as 32 of the 53 Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) MLAs attended the meeting called by the Ajit Pawar group, while 18 MLAs were present at the conclave addressed by the NCP chief, sources in both factions said. Addressing separate meetings, their first after the July 2 split in the 24-year-old party, Sharad Pawar criticised his nephew Ajit Pawar for joining the Shiv Sena-BJP government as they took a jibe at each other over the former's age and use of his photo. (PTI)

Maharashtra deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar on Wednesday took a veiled dig at his uncle and NCP chief Sharad Pawar, lamenting that the state would have a Chief Minister from Nationalist Congress Party only till date, had the party not conceded the top post to Congress during the 2004 Vidhan Sabha election when NCP had more MLAs.

While addressing party legislators and other workers in Bandra, Ajit Pawar said, "In the 2004 Vidhan Sabha election, NCP had more MLAs than Congress. Had we not given chief minister post to Congress at that time, till date, Maharashtra would have had a chief minister only from Nationalist Congress Party". (ANI)

The Election Commission has received a petition from Maharashtra deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar staking claim to Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and the party symbol, sources said.

The sources said the Election Commission has also received a caveat from Jayant Patil, who is with the Sharad Pawar group. He also informed the panel that they have initiated a disqualification process against nine MLAs who joined the Eknath Shinde-BJP government in the state on Sunday.

The sources said action will be taken by the poll panel as per the extant legal framework.

They said ECI had received a petition under Para 15 of the Symbols Order, 1968 from Ajit Pawar on June 30, 2023 followed by 40 odd affidavits of MPs/MLAs/MLCs dated June 30 (received in Commission on July 5).

The sources said the poll panel also received a resolution unanimously electing Ajit Pawar as NCP president.

They said the poll panel has received an email, dated July 3, from Maharashtra NCP chief Jayant R. Patil, filing a caveat.

"The Commission has also received a letter dated July 3 from Jayant Patil informing that disqualification proceeding has been filed before the competent authority for disqualification of nine members of Maharashtra Legislative Assembly," a source said. (ANI)

The factional fight of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) has reached the doorstep of the Election Commission with the group led by Ajit Pawar filing over 40 affidavits of MLAs and MPs in his support. The Sharad Pawar camp has filed a caveat with the poll authority urging it to hear them first before passing any directive in connection with the factional fight, Election Commission sources said.

The Election Commission is likely to process applications in the coming days and ask both the sides to exchange the respective documents submitted before it. (PTI)

Once Nationalist Congress Party founder-President Sharad Pawar steps into the field, the rebels who broke away on Sunday won’t know what has hit them, party state chief Jayant Patil warned on Wednesday.

“A small trailer of this was already shown to the people of the state earlier this week in Kolhapur and Pune… They are forgetting that the ordinary workers of the NCP are still with Saheb. Whatever Pawar Saheb says is the final word for us,” he said.

Slamming the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Patil said that it is indulging in the politics of stealing and splitting parties in the state and elsewhere for their own benefit. “When they don’t like the questions or issues we raise, then they rob us and break us. First they did it with the Shiv Sena (of ex-CM Uddhav Thackeray), now it's happening to the NCP,” he said.

Training guns on the rebels led by Pawar's nephen Ajit Pawar who has quit the NCP to join the ruling Shiv Sena-Bharatiya Janata Party government, Patil demanded how they could join hands with those who had insulted icons like Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, Mahatma Jyotirao Phule, Dr BR Ambedkar, and others. (IANS)

NCP chief Sharad Pawar on Wednesday objected to his big photo adorning the stage at a parallel meeting of the party convened by his nephew Ajit Pawar, and said those using his image are aware that they have nothing else. Addressing a meeting at Chavan Centre in south Mumbai, where around a dozen of 53 NCP MLAs were present, 83-year-old Pawar criticised his nephew for going with BJP for power, despite PM Narendra Modi calling NCP a corrupt party. On Ajit Pawar-led faction approaching Election Commission and staking claim to the party symbol, the veteran politician assured his supporters that he won't allow anyone to snatch the party symbol. (PTI)

Sharad Pawar said that a party's takeover posed a threat to democracy.

The party symbol is with us, it is not going anywhere. The people and party workers who brought us to power are with us, said NCP president Sharad Pawar.

We weren't taken into confidence by the MLAs who decided to split. Ajit Pawar faction has not followed any procedure, said NCP president Sharad Pawar.