A day after Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar announced that he would not be contesting the coming Lok Sabha election from the Madha Lok Sabha constituency in Maharashtra’s Solapur district, his grand nephew Rohit Pawar has requested him to reconsider his decision.
On Monday, Mr. Pawar had indicated he was foregoing the decision to contest in favour of the “younger generation” while endorsing the candidacy of another grand nephew, Parth Pawar for the Maval Lok Sabha seat. Parth is the son of former Deputy Chief Minister and Sharad Pawar’s nephew Ajit Pawar.
Now, his second grand nephew Rohit Pawar, a third generation member of the Pawar clan and Parth Pawar’s cousin, has urged the NCP supremo to ‘rethink’ his decision of not contesting polls in a Facebook post lauding Mr. Pawar’s political career.
“We are aware of the pride felt by stalwarts in the political arena towards Mr. Pawar. Yet, he has always had his ear to the problems of the common man by making him the focal point of his political career for the last 52 years, transcending caste and religious considerations. We respect every decision made by him. But this respect is preceded by great affection. It is because of this immense respect felt by countless workers like myself that I urge Pawar Saheb to reconsider his decision of not contesting the Lok Sabha election,” Rohit Pawar’s post read.
In a thinly veiled jibe aimed at Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, Rohit further warned that those who indulged in frivolous remarks against Mr. Pawar would find their bubble exploding in the upcoming election.
Mr. Pawar’s decision not to contest the election has however brought to fore an ostensible rift within the Pawan clan.
The move to step back and let Parth Pawar contest the Maval Lok Sabha seat in his lieu is being viewed in some quarters as the result of Ajit Pawar’s insistent lobbying for his son.
Meanwhile, in spite of his FB post, Rohit Pawar rebuffed suggestions of any dissonance within the Pawar clan, remarking that any potential problems within the family had always been resolved through dialogue.
Rohit Pawar, who is member of the Zilla Parishad in Baramati, further dispelled suggestions that he was interested in a Lok Sabha ticket.
“At the moment, I am interested in contesting the Assembly election and am directing my efforts to that end,” he said.
On Monday, endorsing Parth Pawar’s candidacy, Mr. Pawar had said that it was felt within the family that the “new generation [of the Pawar clan] be given a chance and that NCP workers, too, were eager about him contesting the election”.
At the time, the NCP chief, too, had clarified that Rohit Pawar was eager for a Vidhan Sabha, and not a Lok Sabha ticket.