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Ajit Anantroa Pawar - Man of the month

Aroon Sharma
Nov 2009

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By the time, this write up sees the light of the day; a government would be in order under Ashok Chavan in Maharashtra but after two weeks of a power sharing impasse. The Indian National Congress learnt the hard way that Allies, be they pre-poll or post-poll, can play hard ball. The National Congress Party was its pre-poll ally, but post poll it refused to settle for ministerial crumbs, seeking larger chunks of the cake.

Though the Congress has upped its tally from 69 MLAs in 2004 to 82 in a House of 288, and the NCP is down to 62 MLAs from 71 it had in 2004 two more than the former, it had agreed to play second fiddle, content with Deputy Chief Ministership and plump portfolios. Later, when Vilas Rao Deshmukh put in his papers after the 26/11 in Mumbai, the Sharad Pawar led NCP had not staked a claim for the top job in the state.

All this has resulted in a rumble within the NCP! One section is for merger with the Congress, and be it. The second is for continuation of Chhagan Bhujbal, the Deputy Chief Minister designate to refuse the post if other NCP heavyweights are denied the portfolios of Home, Finance, Power and Public Works Departement. And the third is for prestige and power due to Sharad Pawar's nephew -- Ajit Pawar.

The nephew, Ajit Pawar wants to be what the uncle, Sharad Pawar was Chief Minister. A decade back, he was little known. But Maharashtra watchers haven't forgotten how he declined to be the Deputy Chief Minister in 1999. That year, the Congress tally froze at 75 and the NCP in its maiden foray led by Sharad Pawar picked up 58 seats. The two cobbled a post poll coalition. Ajit Pawar, 40, declined Deputy Chief Ministership.

Today Ajit Anantrao Pawar is 50. But with the NCP ( 1999-(56), 2004-(71), 2009-(62), ending far behind the finish line in the third round with 20 MLAs less than the Congress, his ambitions have been paid put. Too impatient for a silver lining five years hence, ( or could be fearing the uncle may merge the NCP with the Congress ), Ajit had sent feelers this time that he wouldn't be averse to being Ashok Chavan's deputy.

But just when Ajit Pawar picked up pluck luck deserted him ! Sharad Pawar sent three Central observers Praful Patel, Tariq Anwar and D.P. Tripathi to gauge the mood of 62 newly elected MLAs. Most legislators saw a resurgent NCP with Ajit Pawar as the Deputy Chief Minister. Chhagan Bhujbal no longer enthused them, having been a Deputy Chief Minister twice ( besides getting his son Sameer into the Assembly ? )

However, much to Pawar Jr's dismay, NCP Supremo Pawar Sr. favoured Chhagan Bhujbal following the latter's quartet of arguments that (1) since 1985 he had been an MLA, (2) a founder member of the NCP after quitting Shiv Sena, (3) and an OBC and (4) would not contest a third time. A furious Ajit Pawar walked out of the meeting, was incognito for 16 hours, revealing the next day that he flew to Delhi to meet his uncle.

Ajit conceded he had “misjudged” the support of party MLAs to his candidature, was somewhat submissive while explaning “I have accepted the collective decision taken on the issue ( Deputy Chief Ministership ) and there is no question of my being unhappy.” But a frenzy has since been fuelled. Discontent is simmering among Ajit's co-Maratha MLAs and rural Maharashtra's Maratha lobby who consider Ajit a natural successor.

True, dynastic preferences of Sharad Pawar have changed. His lone child, daughter Supriya Sule was nominated to Rajya Sabha in 2006 surprisingly, both the Congress and Shiv Sena had supported her candidature from the Maharashtra Assembly then. And early this year, Sharad Pawar had vacated his Baramati seat for her, himself shifting to Madha ( Solapur ) to ensure that the father-daughter duo were in Lok Sabha.

Murmurs are that Sharad Pawar is now grooming Supriya Sule as the successor to Chhagan Bhujbal, as and when the opportunity arises, as he had once groomed his nephew some 10-15 years back. But counter murmurs for Ajit are more audible. He has made a mark for his no-nonsense approach, is outspoken and despite being media shy, shunning limelight, is a smooth operator. His 'Pune Pattern', two years back is still his USP.

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