Mere speculation: Chandrakant Patil on rumours about likely merger of NCP factions

Mumbai: Maharashtra minister and BJP leader Chandrakant Patil on Wednesday dismissed speculation surrounding the potential merger of two factions of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), saying nothing has ever materialised.

Speculation about the NCP led by Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar and NCP (SP) led by his uncle Sharad Pawar gained traction after the latter reportedly said it was up to NCP (SP) working president Supriya Sule and Ajit to decide about the reunion.

"The rumoured merger has never taken shape. It has always remained a matter of speculation. It's only a talking point, nothing has materialised," Patil told reporters.

He said the undivided NCP was essentially a party dominated by three individuals- Sharad Pawar, his daughter Sule, and nephew Ajit Pawar.

"Even then, the current state NCP (SP) president Jayant Patil and the party MLA Rohit Pawar (grandnephew of Sharad Pawar) were kept at a distance. They are merely watching the developments, while these three individuals called the shots," he added.

The NCP, founded by Sharad Pawar in 1999, split in July 2023 when Ajit Pawar, then the Leader of the Opposition, joined the ruling Mahayuti alliance, then led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, taking several MLAs with him.

Ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, Ajit Pawar secured the official party name and election symbol, while Sharad Pawar had to register his faction as NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar), with a new symbol.

Sharad Pawar-led NCP (SP) was decimated in the previous year's assembly polls by the NCP headed by Ajit Pawar, which won 41 seats.