MOA president’s post should have remained with NCP, says Jay Pawar

Pune: Jay Pawar, son of deputy chief minister Sunetra Pawar, on Monday said NCP should have retained the Maharashtra Olympic Association (MOA)'s president post, a day after MP Murlidhar Mohol was elected for the position.He told reporters in Baramati that several people from the sports fraternity had reached out to him over the development. "We all wanted the post to remain within NCP. We may discuss the issue with the chief minister soon," Jay said.Mohol was elected president during the association's executive and general body meetings at Balewadi Sports Complex on Sunday. He did not respond to TOI's calls till the time of going to press.The post of MOA president was vacant following the death of former deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar. He had served as the president of the association for three consecutive terms and was elected for the fourth time in Nov last year.Mohol was set to contest against Ajit Pawar then. A deal between NCP and BJP to split the four-year tenure, with Ajit Pawar serving the first two years, helped avoid the faceoff.Reacting to Sunday's development, senior NCP leader and minister Dattatray Bharne said the party was likely to get the post for two years in the latter half of the term. Sunetra was expected to take over as president during that phase, he said.On why Sunetra did not consider it this time despite being the Kho Kho Association president, Bharne cited "technical issues", adding that she was not a member of the executive body. "The decision to share the tenure equally was taken in front of the chief minister and we are confident of getting the remaining two years," he said.Ajit Pawar contested the election through the Kho Kho Association, while Mohol represents the Wrestling Association. After Ajit Pawar's death in the plane crash on Jan 28, his wife, Sunetra, was elected the president of the Kho Kho Association unopposed.A senior member of the executive council of the MOA said the Kho Kho Association had written a letter to the state Olympic association with a change report in the second week of April, stating that Sunetra would be the representative of the association replacing Ajit Pawar. "As per Section 14 of the constitution on which the MOA functions, the executive council is empowered to elect another member of the association in case of the death of the existing member. There was no issue in appointing Sunetra as the new president," he said.The member said the Kho Kho Association representative had tried to approach chief minister Devendra Fadnavis to seek his intervention and halt the process when the issue was placed before the general body for approval, but there was no response.
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