Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar squarely blamed Maharashtra Congress leaders, mainly the outgoing Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan, on Tuesday >for the collapse of the 15-year alliance between the two partie s.
In an interview to The Hindu , Mr. Pawar maintained that Congress president Sonia Gandhi had been in favour of continuing the alliance. However, in an interview to a television channel on Monday, the NCP chief had said that Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi and his team were averse to “carrying allies along.”
While Mr. Pawar side-stepped questions on the role of Mr. Gandhi, he said, “Our intention was to go for an alliance. Congress president Sonia Gandhi’s approach was also positive. But it looks like the State leadership had made up their mind to go separate ways,” he said.
He pointed to Mr. Chavan’s unavailability for talks during the crucial last days and the Congress’ decision to release its first list without informing the NCP as the final triggers to the break.
Instead, Mr. Pawar focussed his fire on Mr. Chavan. “His actions were not healthy for the alliance. His approach was to defame us and to demoralise our rank and file,” Mr. Pawar said. He alleged that Mr. Chavan’s “mischievous and unfair comments” on the irrigation sector fuelled the Opposition’s campaign against the NCP.
Post-poll options Asked if the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Shiv Sena were possible post-election options for his party, Mr. Pawar said, “I hope my party gets absolute majority and does not need allies. But the fact is when these situations have come up in the past, we have never compromised on the issue of secularism.”
He denied allegations of a hidden deal with the BJP which led to the NCP terminating its alliance shortly after the saffron partners parted ways. “We had to take a decision because the filing of nominations had begun. It had nothing to do with the BJP’s decision,” he said.
Mr. Pawar was also critical of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. “Where is the Modi wave? If it was still there, we would not see such results in the recent by-polls,” he said. Claiming that farmers were already disappointed with Mr. Modi, Mr. Pawar said, “Except for good marketing, I do not see anything yet.”
President’s rule Mr. Pawar also defended his party’s decision to pull out of the government, leading to the imposition of the President’s rule in the State. “We cannot contest against each other and govern together. It would look opportunistic,” he said.
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