The political game of chess continues to play on in Maharashtra with all the constituents of the Maha Vikas Aghadi looking to checkmate each other. After the flip-flop over the 5% Muslim reservation, Citizenship Amendment Act has now turned out to the bone of contention within the Maha Vikas Aghadi as Uddhav’s support to the CAA has riled up the Congress and the NCP. However, this time the disparate coalition is facing a unique challenge. It is Sharad Pawar vs Ajit Pawar over the CAA as Deputy CM Ajit Pawar supported the CAA and NPR which threatens to plunge the coalition into fresh crisis, which is already walking on thin ice.
Ajit Pawar last week had reiterated that any citizen of the state will not be affected by the amended Citizenship Act or National Population Register (NPR) exercise and urged the Congress MLAs to not spoil the environment in the state by demanding anti-CAA, NPR resolutions. “I have said it many times in the past and the MVA government too has said that these laws will not affect any Maharashtrian. Uddhavji has also said the same. Do not spoil the mood in our state by citing examples of resolutions passed in any other state,” Pawar said.
The constituents of the ruling coalition are constantly bickering over every issue. Uddhav Thackeray who was taking a cue from Arvind Kejriwal and was following an odd-even policy on his view on the CAA finally settled down and pledged support to the CAA after meeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi much to the displeasure of Congress and NCP who were kept in the dark over Uddhav’s change of heart. Both the parties have publicly maintained that CAA and NPR won’t be implemented in Maharashtra and were determined to convince Uddhav Thackeray to change his stance on the CAA. While focusing on Uddhav, it seem that Ajit Pawar swept the rug from the feet of the MVA after surprisingly pledging his support to the CAA and NPR and criticising Congress MLAs which directly contradicts the official stance of NCP and Sharad Pawar.
Ajit Pawar’s volte face resulted in a major embarrassment for Devendra Fadnavis and the BJP as after falling out with Sharad Pawar, he decided to go back to NCP’s fold. While the media focused on the MVA, the differences in the Pawar clan were swept under the carpet as the Pawars papered over their cracks to have a shot at ruling Maharashtra. The cracks are now resurfacing which threaten the existence of MVA.
It was during the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, where the differences between the uncle and nephew first came to the fore. The Pawar dynasty was at loggerheads with each other as Ajit’s son Parth was initially denied a ticket by Sharad Pawar to contest from the Maval Lok Sabha seat. The possibility of an internal sabotage that resulted in Parth’s stinging defeat has also not been ruled out as Pawar personally was not in favour of Parth contesting the general elections, but had to surrender to the family pressure. Ever since Parth’s defeat, relations between Ajit Pawar and Sharad Pawar have soured.
Ajit has been threatened with the emergence of Rohit Pawar, grandson of another of Sharad Pawar’s brothers, as a third-generation leader from the family and his victory from Karjat-Jamkhed assembly seat may have added to Ajit Pawar’s insecurity. The fact that Sharad Pawar wasted no time in promoting Rohit after the Lok Sabha elections has not gone down well with Ajit. The Pawar clan constantly bickered over the ticket distribution in the Lok Sabha and the state elections with Ajit fighting a lone battle against the combo of Sharad Pawar and Supriya Sule.
Last year, Sharad and Ajit have also bickered over the latter’s appeal to party workers to put up saffron flags along with the party’s tricolour flag to claim the legacy of King Chhatrapati Shivaji, saying the decision was not of the party and he must have said this in his personal capacity.
The Pawar family has always prided itself as a close knit family — a claim which has unravelled over the past one year. Ajit was welcomed back to the party fold despite his backstabbing as he joined hands with Devendra Fadnavis for a brief period. What prompted Sharad Pawar to take back Ajit without any consequences and award him with the post of Deputy CM is anyone’s guess but Ajit’s growing clout within the party cannot be ruled out.
Sharad Pawar’s daughter Supriya Sule and Ajit Pawar are battling for the mantle of NCP once the senior Pawar finally retires. It was the Pawar clan which installed and brought down the Fadnavis government and it will not be a long shot to say that it will be the Pawar clan which installed and brought down the Uddhav Thackeray government.