Three years since coming to power, is Ajit Pawar's NCP staring at free fall?
Party chief Sunetra Pawar and her sons are seen as cementing control, but not without pushback from veterans Praful Patel and Sunil Tatkare
What has intensified the speculation are reports of a purported audio clip in which a senior NCP leader is badmouthing the late party supremo Ajit Pawar (while he was alive), as well as claims of Patel and Tatkare meeting NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar) president Sharad Pawar.
Ajit and his supporters had split the undivided NCP in July 2023 to join the Mahayuti government, then headed by Eknath Shinde. Ajit was made deputy chief minister after the switchover.
Sunetra took over as deputy chief minister on January 31 this year within days of husband Ajit’s demise in an air crash in Baramati. Ajit was known for his no-nonsense style, command over the administration and ability to balance the power equations and interests of regional and sub-regional satraps in the NCP. His death plunged the NCP into a churn.
Sources say Sunetra’s increasing dependence on elder son Parth, who is a Rajya Sabha MP and a rising power centre in the NCP, has led to unease among sections of the established leadership. Parth recently had a late-night meeting with chief minister Devendra Fadnavis. he latter, however, underplayed it as an interaction between leaders of two alliance partners.
Earlier, Sunetra’s letter to the Election Commission (EC) in March had also set the cat among the pigeons. In the communication, she said any correspondence from the NCP to the EC between January 28 and February 26 (after she took the reins of the party) should not be considered.
This was seen as a blow to former Union minister and NCP working president Patel and Tatkare, who is the Lok Sabha MP from Raigad, the NCP’s Maharashtra chief as well as the party’s national general secretary. During Ajit’s time, Patel and Tatkare were seen as in-charge of the party organisation.
It is claimed that Patel and Tatkare had written to the EC that the NCP constitution had been amended and all powers were now vested with the working president. This was charged to be an attempt to take over the party organisation. Missing photographs of Ajit and Sunetra on posters at an NCP function attended by Tatkare in his constituency had added grist to the mill.
Patel and Tatkare’s names were missing from the list of party office-bearers submitted by the NCP to the EC on April 29. However, Sunetra later posted on social media that this was a “clerical mistake”. In a major shake-up, Parth and his younger brother Jai were elevated as NCP general secretary and national secretary, respectively.
Patel and Tatkare met Sharad Pawar on May 12. They are thought to have complained about Parth and sought Pawar Senior’s intervention as a family elder. For the record, both NCP leaders deny any rift or differences within the ranks. However, they remained absent during Sunetra’s visit to New Delhi last month, and differences are also said to have cropped up over discontinuing the services of a political consultant associated with the party.
At the same time, Parth has gone on social media denying “baseless reports and speculative narratives” and stating that Patel and Tatkare’s “decades of unwavering commitment and leadership continue to guide us all”.
These fluctuating episodes have only left the NCP rank and file alarmed. “If things continue this way, there may be a vertical split in the party. Parth Pawar seems to be in a hurry to take control,” remarked a senior NCP leader. He speculated that the renegade group could either join forces with the NCP (SCP) or the BJP. The meeting between Pawar Senior and Patel-Tatkare assumes importance in this backdrop.
Now, a meeting between the warring NCP groups is scheduled to be held this week.
The NCP leader said that in the party national executive held on February 26, Sunetra was elected as national president, with Patel and Tatkare as working president and national general secretary, respectively. Hence, the party was not at liberty to amend these resolutions in its communication with the EC.
NCP (SCP) MLA and Sharad Pawar’s grand-nephew Rohit Pawar has claimed that Patel-Tatkare would join the BJP with 22 legislators and contest the next polls as BJP nominees. He claimed Aditi Tatkare, who is Sunil Tatkare’s daughter and Maharashtra minister for women and child development, would be replaced with Sunil Shelke, the two-term NCP MLA from Maval in Pune.
Without naming the leaders involved, Rohit claimed Sunetra and the family had heard the contents of an audio clip in which a senior NCP leader was purportedly speaking against Ajit. However, NCP spokesperson Umesh Patil has countered that Rohit hand over the clip for forensic analysis.
Rohit had earlier alleged that Patel and Tatkare were trying to seize control of the NCP and were discussing defection before Ajit’s death. Rohit is said to be eager to contest from the Baramati assembly seat in the 2029 elections. The constituency elected Sunetra in 2024 with a record margin of around 220,000 votes. Jay may also be keen to throw his hat into the ring in 2029.
Media reports that staff at the NCP’s Delhi office had been instructed to not let Patel and Tatkare in had led to a furore, following which a denial was issued by NCP leader Avinash Adik. He described the duo as the “seniormost leaders of the party” and added that the two would sit in the party president’s cabin in the Delhi office.
Turbulence in the NCP has already seen former Lok Sabha MP Anand Paranjape defect to deputy chief minister Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena. Fishing in troubled waters, social justice minister and Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Shirsat claimed the NCP would split and that “the emotional fissures between the rival camps were too deep to be bridged”.
According to leaders, the perception that Patel and Tatkare wanted to take control had led to restiveness in the rank and file because the NCP is seen as a party of the dominant Maratha community. Patel and Tatkare are non-Marathas.
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What has intensified the speculation are reports of a purported audio clip in which a senior NCP leader is badmouthing the late party supremo Ajit Pawar (while he was alive), as well as claims of Patel and Tatkare meeting NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar) president Sharad Pawar.
Ajit and his supporters had split the undivided NCP in July 2023 to join the Mahayuti government, then headed by Eknath Shinde. Ajit was made deputy chief minister after the switchover.
Sunetra took over as deputy chief minister on January 31 this year within days of husband Ajit’s demise in an air crash in Baramati. Ajit was known for his no-nonsense style, command over the administration and ability to balance the power equations and interests of regional and sub-regional satraps in the NCP. His death plunged the NCP into a churn.
Sources say Sunetra’s increasing dependence on elder son Parth, who is a Rajya Sabha MP and a rising power centre in the NCP, has led to unease among sections of the established leadership. Parth recently had a late-night meeting with chief minister Devendra Fadnavis. he latter, however, underplayed it as an interaction between leaders of two alliance partners.
Earlier, Sunetra’s letter to the Election Commission (EC) in March had also set the cat among the pigeons. In the communication, she said any correspondence from the NCP to the EC between January 28 and February 26 (after she took the reins of the party) should not be considered.
This was seen as a blow to former Union minister and NCP working president Patel and Tatkare, who is the Lok Sabha MP from Raigad, the NCP’s Maharashtra chief as well as the party’s national general secretary. During Ajit’s time, Patel and Tatkare were seen as in-charge of the party organisation.
It is claimed that Patel and Tatkare had written to the EC that the NCP constitution had been amended and all powers were now vested with the working president. This was charged to be an attempt to take over the party organisation. Missing photographs of Ajit and Sunetra on posters at an NCP function attended by Tatkare in his constituency had added grist to the mill.
Patel and Tatkare’s names were missing from the list of party office-bearers submitted by the NCP to the EC on April 29. However, Sunetra later posted on social media that this was a “clerical mistake”. In a major shake-up, Parth and his younger brother Jai were elevated as NCP general secretary and national secretary, respectively.
Patel and Tatkare met Sharad Pawar on May 12. They are thought to have complained about Parth and sought Pawar Senior’s intervention as a family elder. For the record, both NCP leaders deny any rift or differences within the ranks. However, they remained absent during Sunetra’s visit to New Delhi last month, and differences are also said to have cropped up over discontinuing the services of a political consultant associated with the party.
At the same time, Parth has gone on social media denying “baseless reports and speculative narratives” and stating that Patel and Tatkare’s “decades of unwavering commitment and leadership continue to guide us all”.
These fluctuating episodes have only left the NCP rank and file alarmed. “If things continue this way, there may be a vertical split in the party. Parth Pawar seems to be in a hurry to take control,” remarked a senior NCP leader. He speculated that the renegade group could either join forces with the NCP (SCP) or the BJP. The meeting between Pawar Senior and Patel-Tatkare assumes importance in this backdrop.
Now, a meeting between the warring NCP groups is scheduled to be held this week.
The NCP leader said that in the party national executive held on February 26, Sunetra was elected as national president, with Patel and Tatkare as working president and national general secretary, respectively. Hence, the party was not at liberty to amend these resolutions in its communication with the EC.
NCP (SCP) MLA and Sharad Pawar’s grand-nephew Rohit Pawar has claimed that Patel-Tatkare would join the BJP with 22 legislators and contest the next polls as BJP nominees. He claimed Aditi Tatkare, who is Sunil Tatkare’s daughter and Maharashtra minister for women and child development, would be replaced with Sunil Shelke, the two-term NCP MLA from Maval in Pune.
Without naming the leaders involved, Rohit claimed Sunetra and the family had heard the contents of an audio clip in which a senior NCP leader was purportedly speaking against Ajit. However, NCP spokesperson Umesh Patil has countered that Rohit hand over the clip for forensic analysis.
Rohit had earlier alleged that Patel and Tatkare were trying to seize control of the NCP and were discussing defection before Ajit’s death. Rohit is said to be eager to contest from the Baramati assembly seat in the 2029 elections. The constituency elected Sunetra in 2024 with a record margin of around 220,000 votes. Jay may also be keen to throw his hat into the ring in 2029.
Media reports that staff at the NCP’s Delhi office had been instructed to not let Patel and Tatkare in had led to a furore, following which a denial was issued by NCP leader Avinash Adik. He described the duo as the “seniormost leaders of the party” and added that the two would sit in the party president’s cabin in the Delhi office.
Turbulence in the NCP has already seen former Lok Sabha MP Anand Paranjape defect to deputy chief minister Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena. Fishing in troubled waters, social justice minister and Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Shirsat claimed the NCP would split and that “the emotional fissures between the rival camps were too deep to be bridged”.
According to leaders, the perception that Patel and Tatkare wanted to take control had led to restiveness in the rank and file because the NCP is seen as a party of the dominant Maratha community. Patel and Tatkare are non-Marathas.
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