Ajit's Ne-Phew Moment! NCP's Maha Shock Comes after Sharad Pawar’s Resignation, New Working Presidents

Nationalist Congress Party’s (NCP) Ajit Pawar on Sunday took oath as Deputy Chief Minister at Raj Bhawan and joined the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government in Maharashtra led by CM Eknath Shinde.

The move comes days after the reshuffle in NCP. So where does the party stand now?

THE MAY 2 RESIGNATION SHOCK

After the debacle of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) under then CM Uddhav Thackeray, there were unconfirmed reports about how the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was keen to have another partner to win maximum Lok Sabha seats in Maharashtra. There were talks that one camp of the NCP was in touch with the BJP and had even approached Ajit Pawar.

In the middle of all this, Sharad Pawar on May 2 suddenly announced his decision to step down as NCP president on May 2. Leaders across parties and party workers urged him to reconsider the decision. NCP’s national vice-president Praful Patel on May 5 announced that the party has unanimously rejected Sharad Pawar’s resignation as the outfit’s supremo.

WORKING PRESIDENTS: SUPRIYA SULE AND PRAFUL PATEL

On the Nationalist Congress Party’s foundation day on June 10, Sharad Pawar, the party supremo, on the party’s 24th foundation day, announced the names of Supriya Sule and Praful Patel as the working presidents of the party. This is the first time that the NCP will have the post of ‘working president’.

As the working president, Sule was given the responsibility of Maharashtra, Haryana and Punjab, whereas Patel got Goa, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. Both leaders represent the NCP in Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, and also have contacts across parties.

By appointing two working presidents, Pawar gave them responsibilities of different states. The next step was to mentor a leader, so that after the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, they run the show when Pawar steps down.

Patel has already made it clear that he is not in the running to become national president. Hence, in such a scenario, the party’s Lok Sabha face Sule is likely to take over as the national president after the all-important elections next year.

Pawar has also given the responsibility of Maharashtra to Sule, which could be a hint that she could be the next boss. She was awarded the ‘best parliamentarian’ award more than a couple of times and has good connections across all parties.

CADRE GALVANISED, BUT NEW CHALLENGE AHEAD

With his resignation saga, Pawar created space in the hearts and minds of young party workers again, with a clear agenda to fight the BJP head-on. Pawar also got the confidence that the young brigade of his party is with him, which has boosted his energy levels.

He started his tours of rural Maharashtra and made speeches against the BJP.

However, Ajit Pawar’s new twist of joining the Maharashtra government, has added a new challenge ahead of the party.