Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut said NCP Chief Sharad Pawar will not admit anyone like that. Pawar may have political calculations behind admitting former BJP leader Eknath Khadse in the NCP.
A day after Khadse’s decision to quit BJP and join NCP, Raut said Pawar is the most powerful leader in politics and he is the head of the party. “He will not allow anyone to enter NCP just like that. They must have understood Khadse’s importance. I heard Pawar’s earlier statement in which he said that those who have left will not be taken back in the NCP fold. If Pawar can take such tough decisions, then at the same time he is admitting the leading leader of BJP. There must be some political calculations,” he noted.
In a related development, Shiv Sena minister Gulabrao Patil, who hails from Khadse’s Jalgaon district said the party had fought elections against NCP, BJP and Congress. “Now three parties have joined hands and formed the Maha Vikas Aghadi government in the state. I had said a month ago that Khadse will quit BJP and he has done it now. With Khadse joining NCP, the Maha Vikas Aghadi’s strength in Jalgaon district will increase,” he noted.
Patil said he does not worry about any post. “BJP and Congress have power in Zilla Parishad while BJP, Shiv Sena, Congress, NCP and other parties rule the district central cooperative bank. I welcome Khadse’s decision to join NCP and reiterate that it will certainly increase MVA’s strength,” he noted.
Meanwhile, Republican Party of India (RPI) chief and union minister Ramdas Athavale said Khadse has committed a major mistake by announcing his decision to join NCP. Instead, he should have joined RPI. “There is no truth that BJP’s 16 legislators will quit the party and go with Khadse. Nobody will go with him,” he noted.
