NCP MLA Atul Benke meets Pawar, sparks speculation

MUMBAI: Days after NCP (SP) Sharad Pawar changed his stand on accepting rebel MLAs back into the party fold, Atul Benke, NCP MLA from Junnar, met Pawar at party MP Amol Kolhe’s residence in Pune. The meeting on Saturday morning has set tongues wagging, as it took place amid speculation that a few NCP MLAs would return to Pawar ahead of the assembly elections scheduled somewhere between September and October.

Benke, when asked, admitted to meeting Pawar but insisted that it was for the development of Junnar. “Neither did I speak about this nor did Saheb (Pawar) say anything of this sort to me, and thus there is no question of shifting sides,” he said. Pawar, on his part, reiterated that there was no political discussion. “People do come to meet me, and he is the son of my friend,” he said.

However, the NCP (SP) president added that “political decisions” would be “taken at an appropriate time”. “There is no need to discuss it here,” he said. “Moreover, those who worked for our candidates in the Lok Sabha are ours.”

Benke, however, also said that anything was possible in Maharashtra politics. “I am repeating it again,” he said. “The politics of this state has seen many developments in the recent past, and anything can happen even today. Even Saheb (Pawar) and Dada (Ajit) may come together or something else could also happen. Thus, I cannot say from where I will fight and how I will go ahead.” Pawar Senior, however, later strongly refuted the possibility of any reunion with his nephew.

NCP insiders said that some leaders in their party could move out because of several reasons but they would be replaced by others, and added that this would happen with all the parties in the run-up to the elections. “Some leaders may believe that they will not be able to secure success against MVA candidates, considering the demography of the constituency,” said a senior NCP leader. “They will certainly look for options. But several leaders from other parties are also looking at the NCP as an option and their names will be revealed at an appropriate time.”

Deputy chief minister and NCP chief Ajit Pawar too reacted similarly. “Many MLAs also meet me; there is nothing new about it,” he said. “When some leaders realise that their party may not be able to retain their seat in the seat-sharing, they start looking for options.”

The NCP got four seats as an alliance partner in the recently concluded Lok Sabha elections. Of these, the party’s candidates failed in three constituencies, including Baramati, Pawar’s pocket borough from where Ajit’s wife Sunetra contested the polls. The poor showing has created unease among NCP MLAs and leaders, which led to speculation that some were shifting loyalties back to Pawar Senior. In the Lok Sabha polls, the NCP’s Parner MLA Nilesh Lanke left the party and successfully contested the election as an NCP (SP) candidate from Ahmednagar constituency. Former MP and union minister Suryakanta Patil also returned to the Pawar-led party last month.