Maharashtra Cabinet minister Dhananjay Munde suggests next ‘CM’ will be from NCP

Amid speculation over differences within the Shiv Sena-led Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government in Maharashtra, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) cabinet minister Dhananjay Munde suggested that the next Chief Minister of the state will be from the NCP. Notably, the NCP supremo on May 28 dismissed reports of rift amongst the coalition partners and said that the government will complete its full term of five years. The party is a key ally in the MVA government, which completed 2.5 years in power this month. 

Praising the work of his Social Justice ministry, Maharashtra’s cabinet minister and NCP leader Munde during a rally in Parbhani stated that the ministry has won laurels for the initiatives undertaken. 

“If a question arises tomorrow regarding whom to hand over the social justice portfolio……whoever would be the next chief minister….and the CM will be ours (NCP’s) only. The CM will say that let the social justice portfolio remain with us (NCP). This department has earned so much reputation,” Munde said.  

Differences within NCP & Congress over local body elections

In a recent local body election in the Gondia panchayat poll, the NCP’s Nana Patole accused Congress of supporting the BJP candidate. He cited that the letter undersigned by all the coalition partners in the MVA – Congress, NCP and Shiv Sena is to support each other in local polls to defeat the BJP. The letter is signed by Maharashtra Congress president Nana Patole, NCP state president Jayant Patil and Shiv Sena leader Subhash Desai.

Patole said that he contacted NCP leader Praful Patel and state president Jayant Patil to endorse their support for the Congress candidate. “But the local unit of the NCP supported the BJP. This is complete breach of trust of alliance partners. If NCP did not wanted to make alliance with congress, they should have informed us. We would not have relied on them. They should be candidate, not to backstabbing (Sic),” Patole said.

NCP leader and deputy CM Ajit Pawar said that such incidents do happen in alliance in local body elections and suggested that efforts should be made to avoid the repetition of such incidents in the future. “Nana Patole earlier with Congress, then joined BJP and now again in Congress. Let’s better not to speak over it. Let him take this issue with his high command. Then, our seniors will take call over it,” Ajit Pawar said.  

Image: PTI