“I have no information about this…” Sharad Pawar reacts to decision on making Sunetra Deputy CM

New Delhi (The Uttam Hindu): Following the demise of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, political speculation has intensified over the possibility of his wife, Sunetra Pawar, being appointed as the new Deputy Chief Minister. Sunetra Pawar arrived in Mumbai on Saturday along with her son Parth Pawar. According to sources, she may take oath for the Deputy CM post later today.

Reacting to these developments, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar distanced himself from the decision. He clearly stated that he has no official information regarding Sunetra Pawar’s possible oath-taking ceremony and came to know about it only through media reports.

Addressing a press conference in Baramati, Sharad Pawar said he had not been informed about any such swearing-in and emphasized that the matter has no connection with him. When asked whether any member of the Pawar family would attend the ceremony, he said that the decision must have been taken by the NCP leadership. He hinted that senior leaders such as Praful Patel and Sunil Tatkare may have taken the initiative and finalized the strategy.

Sharad Pawar also mentioned that his late nephew Ajit Pawar had wished for both factions of the NCP to come together. He said discussions regarding the merger had already begun, involving Ajit Pawar, Shashikant Shinde, and Jayant Patil, and February 12 was fixed as the tentative date. However, Ajit Pawar passed away before the plan could materialize.

It is noteworthy that Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar died in a plane crash in Baramati on January 28. After his death, a section of the NCP demanded that Sunetra Pawar be inducted into the Devendra Fadnavis-led state government in his place. Party sources claim that Sunetra Pawar, who is a Rajya Sabha MP, may take oath as Deputy Chief Minister on Saturday and assume her late husband’s cabinet position.