Will accept the final decision of Election Commission on NCP name and symbol: Ajit Pawar

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, who leads the rebel faction of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), stated on Monday that the Election Commission of India (ECI) would make the ultimate decision regarding the NCP, and he is prepared to accept the outcome.

Addressing reporters in Pune, Ajit Pawar, who had initiated a split within the NCP by joining the Shinde-Fadnavis government in July along with other NCP MLAs, asserted, "The Election Commission will provide the final decision... Once the dates are set, both sides will present their cases before the Election Commission... I will accept the final decision that comes after that."

When questioned about the possibility of him becoming the Chief Minister, the Deputy CM, popularly known as Ajit Dada among his supporters, denied the claims, stating, "There is no truth in this news... I focus solely on development."

Notably, following the NCP split, Ajit had moved to the ECI to stake a claim to the party and its symbol. It is important to note that both factions have maintained that the party has not split and that they represent the real NCP.

Ajit faction submits disqualification petition of Sharad Pawar Camp MLAs

The Ajit Pawar faction of the Nationalist Congress Party has submitted a petition to Maharashtra Assembly Speaker Rahul Narwekar, requesting the disqualification of 10 MLAs affiliated with party founder Sharad Pawar. Anil Bhaidas Patil, the chief whip of the Ajit Pawar faction, filed the petition on Thursday.

The 10 MLAs named in the petition include Jayant Patil, Jitendra Awhad, Rajesh Tope, Rohit Pawar, Anil Deshmukh, Prajakt Tanpure, Balasaheb Patil, Sunil Bhusara, Sandeep Kshirsagar, and Suman Patil, as stated by Anil Bhaidas Patil.

Incidentally, the Sharad Pawar faction has previously filed disqualification petitions against 40 MLAs who aligned with Ajit Pawar. The NCP holds 53 seats in the 288-member Maharashtra Assembly, with legislators like Nawab Malik and Suman Patil maintaining a neutral stance.

On July 2, the NCP witnessed a split as Ajit and eight MLAs, including Chhagan Bhujbal, Hasan Mushrif, and Dilip Walse Patil, joined the Eknath Shinde government. Ajit Pawar assumed the role of deputy chief minister, while the other eight were appointed as ministers. In response, the Sharad Pawar group also submitted disqualification petitions against seven of these nine MLAs.

(With inputs from agencies)