Pawar, Sangma may part ways on Sonia issue

NEW DELHI: With Sharad Pawar extending an olive branch to the Congress on the one hand and P A Sangma persisting with his anti-Sonia line on the other, it may not be surprising if the two Nationalist Congress Party stalwarts part ways sooner rather than later.
Pawar says he is prepared to keep his ego aside for the larger benefit of the secular cause.But Sangma wouldn''t budge an inch from his well-established anti-Sonia position. He has made it clear that his party wouldn''t align with the Congress in any of the north-eastern states going to the polls.
To his friends and followers, he has been heard saying that he would rather stand alone in his fight on the people-of-foreign-origin issue than dilute his broadside against the Congress president.
Talking to one of his friends here the other day, Sangma said that he was even prepared to accept the leadership of Priyanka or Rahul. But he would never rejoin the Congress as long as Sonia, a person of foreign origin, was at the helm of the party''s affairs, he added. He also made it clear in course of the friendly conversation that "but for Sonia, the Congress was a wonderful party".
It''s not that Pawar is not aware of Sangma''s piece of mind. But a political pragmatist that he is, he just cannot ignore the demands of almost all the NCP ministers and legislators of Maharashtra who have been literally craving for greater unity between the two Congress parties, especially in the aftermath of the Gujarat election results.
Pawar''s change of heart is, in fact, a direct byproduct of the heated deliberations in the state level NCP meet in Mumbai earlier this week. The NCP stalwart was told, without mincing words, that the BJP-Shiv Sena combine would sweep the next elections in the state unless the two Congress parties united, if not merged. He was also told that the NCP would, in fact, wither away in the long run unless they joined forces with Sonia''s party. And more importantly, it is in Pawar''s own interest that he patch up with the Nehru-Gandhi family, senior NCP ministers told him politely but firmly.
Agreeing with almost every word uttered there, Pawar did some serious soul-searching. Later, he told reporters: "Our ego has grown taller than our physical height. Let''s keep our feet on the ground and face the reality. If we want to defeat communal forces, all secular parties will have to come together."
Although Pawar did not say so, NCP sources said that the Maharashtra strongman would soon initiate discussions with Sangma over the all important policy change. It is significant that more and more NCP leaders, including Tariq Anwar, are beginning to appreciate Pawar''s pragmatic approach.