"Neither did I contact any BJP leader, nor did they contact me": NCP's Jayant Patil dismisses speculation of him switching to BJP

Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], February 19 (ANI): Nationalist Congress Party (Sharad Chandra Pawar) leader Jayant Patil on Monday dismissed speculation of him joining the ruling BJP and said that he neither contacted any leader from the ruling party nor did they contact him.
After senior Congress leader Ashok Chavan jumped ship to the ruling camp in Maharashtra, there have been speculations about several MLAs following him. However, there is no confirmation from their side.
The NCP, the Congress, and the Shiv Sena (UBT) are allies in the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance in the state.
"Neither did I contact any BJP leader, nor did they contact me. I don't understand where such news comes from," Jayant Patil said.
"I belong to the NCP; I will not go anywhere. Some people did leave the party, but even after that, we stood unitedly and kept working," he added.
The NCP leader further said that the focus of the party is to perform well in the forthcoming Lok Sabha polls.
"Our utter focus is to perform well in the coming Lok Sabha polls," he said.
Ashok Chavan, earlier this month, quit Congress and joined the BJP in the presence of Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis.
He is the third big name to desert the Congress ship in Maharashtra. First to go was former South Mumbai MP Milind Deora, followed by former MLA Baba Siddique. (ANI)