"Why did he field Vahini?" Shrinivas Pawar blames Ajit Pawar for initiating rift in family

Baramati (Maharashtra) [India], October 29 (ANI): A day after NCP leader Ajit Pawar claimed that Sharad Pawar was causing a rift within the family by selecting Yugendra Pawar as the party's candidate from Baramati, his brother Shrinivas Pawar stated on Tuesday that the tensions began when Ajit nominated his wife, Sunetra Pawar, for the Lok Sabha elections.

The Baramati constituency in Maharashtra is again going to witness a high-stakes family battle as NCP leader Ajit Pawar will face his nephew Yugendra Pawar. He is the son of Ajit Pawar's younger brother Shrinivas Pawar.

Launching an attack on his brother and NCP leader Ajit Pawar, Shrinivas Pawar said that the former should not have fielded his wife from Baramati in the Lok Sabha elections against their sister Supriya Sule.

Baramati also witnessed a high-profile battle in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, when Sunetra Pawar contested against NCP (SCP) candidate Supriya Sule. The latter won the contest by 1.5 lakh votes.

"Why did he (Ajit Pawar) field Vahini (Sunetra Pawar) from the constituency when everyone was telling him not to do so? His (Ajit Pawar) party and ideology have changed as he believes in BJP's ideology now. The people of Baramati will take the correct decision which we will see on 23rd November," Shrinivas Pawar said while speaking to ANI.

Exuding confidence in his son's victory from Baramati, Sharmila Pawar, wife of Shrinivas Pawar, while speaking to ANI said, "Today is a big day for all Baramatikars, not only for me or my husband or Yugendra. You can see the love for Pawar sahib, Supriya Tai and Yugendra dada the whole Pawar family here. The people of Baramati are very intelligent and they have already made their decision. They voted for Supriya Tai in Lok Sabha (polls) and I am 100% sure that they will vote for Yugendra Pawar...Mr Pawar is the head of the family and a father figure, I think whatever decisions taken during Lok Sabha will be carried forward. This is politics and as a leader one needs to stick to a decision...Me and Srinivas have given our child to the people of Baramati."

Meanwhile, Ajit Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister and NCP chief Ajit Pawar got emotional while adressing a rally on Monday and alleged that the NCP patron Sharad Pawar had created a split in the family and fielded a candidate against him.

"I previously admitted to making a mistake, but it seems like others are now making errors too. My family and I had agreed to file the form in Baramati first, but that didn't happen. Despite the challenges, we managed to improve the situation. My mother has been very supportive, and she even advised that they should not nominate anyone against Ajit Pawar. However, I was told that Saheb (Sharad Pawar) instructed someone to file a nomination against me.... Saheb created the split within the family. ... I just want to say that politics should not be brought to such a low level, because it took the generations to be united and it doesn't take a single moment to break the family..," he said.

Ajit Pawar is fielded against his nephew and Sharad Pawar's grandson Yugendra Pawar, having lost the lok Sabha seat to his sister Supriya Sule the Maharashtra Deputy CM will be keen to prove his might in Baramati.

The Maharashtra Assembly elections are scheduled for November 20, with counting for all 288 constituencies set for November 23.

In the 2019 assembly elections, the BJP won 105 seats, the Shiv Sena 56, and the Congress 44. In 2014, the BJP secured 122 seats, the Shiv Sena 63, and the Congress 42. (ANI)