Mumbai, Nov 8 Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut on Sunday asserted that Sharad Pawar’s NCP (SP) will not join the ruling BJP-led National Democratic Alliance, his comments coming amid speculation of a merger of the two NCP factions.
The merger buzz gained strength earlier this week after several leaders of the Sunetra Pawar-led Nationalist Congress Party, including Praful Patel and Parth Pawar, met Sharad Pawar, who was recently hospitalised for a chest infection.
While Parth Pawar met the Opposition stalwart at his ‘Silver Oak’ residence in south Mumbai on Saturday, the meeting between Patel and the NCP (SP) chief took place at Breach Candy hospital.
A viral video showed Sharad Pawar and Patel discussing a possible meeting after November 10. Meanwhile, NCP state president Sunil Tatkare said the merger of the two factions would have taken place in February this year had Ajit Pawar been alive.
“The NCP (SP) headed by Sharad Pawar won’t join the NDA,” Raut told reporters here.
The Shiv Sena (UBT) Rajya Sabha MP also took a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis celebrating Diwali on Saturday-Sunday with CRPF troopers and farmers, respectively, claiming these are “one-day affairs”.
“The prime minister is spending Diwali with (CRPF) soldiers, but that does not stop Chinese incursions (into Indian territory) or Pulwama and Pahalgam type (terror) attacks,” Raut said.
Modi on Sunday celebrated Diwali with security personnel at a CRPF camp in Chhattisgarh’s Bastar, continuing his tradition of spending the festival with India’s brave men and women in uniform.
Hitting out at Fadnavis, Raut said the CM celebrating Diwali with farmers (in Lohari Savanga village in Nagpur on Saturday and Sunday) is not going to mitigate their woes amid drought.
The government must take concrete steps to address their issues and visit them frequently, Raut added.
(PTI News)
