Ajit Pawar resigns as Maharashtra deputy CM, reaches out to uncle Sharad

Mumbai, November 26

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Hours after resigning as deputy chief minister of Maharashtra, NCP leader Ajit Pawar on Tuesday night reached the residence of his uncle and party chief Sharad Pawar in south Mumbai.

Ajit Pawar reached out to Sharad Pawar following persuasion by NCP leaders who demanded that the former returned to the party fold.

Earlier in the day, Ajit Pawar, who had lent support to the BJP-led government on Saturday, resigned as deputy chief minister of Maharashtra.

The development led to collapse of the government headed by chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, who also stepped down in afternoon.

On Saturday, Ajit Pawar was sacked as the NCP legislature party leader. 

Ajit Pawar resigned as Deputy CM while citing personal reasons.

Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said Ajit Pawar told him that he was quitting due to personal reasons.

Asked if he thought Ajit Pawar extending support to the BJP was a strategy of NCP chief Sharad Pawar, Fadnavis said, “Sharad Pawar will be able to comment on this issue”.

“Ajit dada has resigned and he is with us. Uddhav Thackeray will be the chief minister of Maharashtra for five years,” Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut said.

In a dramatic twist to political events in Maharashtra, BJP’s Devendra Fadnavis was sworn in by Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari as the next chief minister early on Saturday morning, Ajit Pawar as his deputy.

Koshyari administered the oath of office to the two leaders in a hush hush ceremony at the Raj Bhavan, setting off political ripples across parties in the state.

The BJP and the Sena, which fought the last month’s Assembly polls in an alliance, secured a comfortable majority by winning 105 and 56 seats respectively.

The Sena, however, broke its three-decade-long ties with the BJP after the latter declined to share the chief minister’s post.

The NCP and Congress won 54 and 44 seats respectively. — PTI