Sunetra Pawar's Delhi Meetings with Modi and Shah See No NCP Merger Discussions
Deputy Chief Minister Sunetra Pawar's recent visit to New Delhi, where she met Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah, has not advanced any discussions on a potential merger between the two factions of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), according to senior party sources. The developments come amid renewed speculation over a possible reunification of the NCP and NCP (SP) factions.
No Merger on the Agenda
According to leaders present during the meetings, the issue of a merger between the NCP and the NCP (SP) was neither on the agenda nor discussed. A senior leader who accompanied Pawar during her visit stated, "The issue was not on the agenda of today's meetings, neither it was mentioned anywhere. Ultimately, the opinion of top two leaders of the country will have to be considered before going ahead as merger would mean entry of a new party into NDA's fold." This trip marked her first visit to the national capital after the death of her husband and former Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar. She was sworn in as Deputy Chief Minister four days after his demise.
Speculation and Claims
The developments occur amid renewed speculation over a possible reunification of the two NCP factions. Leaders from the NCP (SP) have claimed that Ajit Pawar had initiated and finalised merger talks before his death. However, a senior NCP leader dismissed these claims, saying, "the information on those talks is not available with us and hence the issue of following it does not arise." Talks of a merger had intensified earlier this week following reports of a meeting between Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, Sunetra Pawar, and NCP (SP) leader Jayant Patil at the state legislative complex. According to NCP (SP) leaders, Patil had been leading negotiations and had worked out key details of a possible merger, but the meeting reportedly lasted only a few minutes.
Stalled Discussions
In another sign that discussions may have stalled, NCP (SP) MLA Rohit Pawar, who was scheduled to hold a press conference in Delhi on Thursday regarding the merger, announced that he was cancelling the briefing. Party insiders said the move suggested that no breakthrough was imminent. NCP state president Sunil Tatkare has maintained that the party has no plan to exit the ruling NDA alliance. "It is up to them (NCP SP) to decide whether they want to join the NDA," Tatkare had said earlier, amid speculation following Ajit Pawar's death.
Future Leadership
Meanwhile, the NCP is yet to finalise the date for its national council meeting, where a new national president is expected to be chosen. Several party leaders and legislators have demanded that Sunetra Pawar be appointed to the post following Ajit Pawar's demise. This adds another layer of complexity to the political dynamics within the party as it navigates leadership transitions and potential factional reunification.
