What's cooking in the Pawar family?

New Delhi: Maratha strongman Sharad Pawar and his estranged nephew Ajit Pawar might have come together in family functions on many occasions since the split of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) in 2023, but the fear of a poor show in the upcoming elections to local bodies appears to be prompting both leaders to join hands and stay relevant in Maharashtra politics.

The upcoming civic polls are equally critical for the two factions of Shiv Sena, the one led by Uddhav Thackeray and the other by Eknath Shinde, besides the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) of Raj Thackeray.

For the political survival of these regional outfits, it is very important for them to win a certain number of seats in the local bodies elections.

The Pawars know it very well. Both factions of the NCP have to perform well to stay relevant, and any division among their loyal voters would hurt them the most. To avoid that, the uncle-nephew duo must be contemplating a united front, even if it is for the time being.

Having said that, rumours regarding various possibilities have been doing the rounds ever since Ajit Pawar parted ways with his uncle. At one point of time, it was said that Sharad Pawar was being forced by his nephew to join hands with the BJP and become a part of the governments both at the Centre and in the state. 

This was when the senior Pawar had announced his resignation as the NCP president on May 2, 2023. Ajit Pawar had then insisted that his uncle was not going to take back the resignation. Ajit Pawar had suggested to his uncle to hand over the reins of the party to Supriya Sule, who in turn would announce an alliance with the BJP, since Sharad Pawar did not want to ally with the saffron party in the later years after opposing it throughout his life.

However, three days later, on May 5, 2023, the veteran Maratha leader took back his resignation, apparently under pressure from within the NCP and other opposition leaders.

Another major crisis hit the NCP on July 2, 2023, when Ajit Pawar broke ranks with his uncle and split the party to become a part of the Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde)-BJP alliance in Maharashtra.

It was also said that at some point of time there were suggestions to senior Pawar from within his faction to merge it with the Congress, as a result of which Sule would become the undisputed leader of the grand old party in Maharashtra. This has not happened so far.

For his part, Sharad Pawar on Saturday once again ruled out joining hands with his nephew, maintaining that he would never ally with someone who had aligned with the BJP. The Maratha strongman insisted that he would take along only those who believe in the ideology of Gandhi-Shahu-Phule-Ambedkar.

But it is well-known in Maharashtra political circles that Sharad Pawar is an enigma and one who keeps his cards close to his chest. In the words of many senior Maharashtra politicians, "Saheb (Sharad Pawar) never does what he says. He only does what he doesn't say." It remains to be seen what he does and doesn't say.

Meanwhile, there is also some churning happening in the ruling alliance as well. 

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and his loyalists are of the view that Eknath Shinde would become a liability for the BJP in the long run, and thus, it is important to dump him now. That is why Fadnavis is seen courting Uddhav Thackeray these days. 

The overtures of Fadnavis towards Uddhav Thackeray prompted Eknath Shinde to rush to Delhi and meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah.

Interesting times lie ahead in Maharashtra politics.