NEW DELHI: The BJP wants Sharad Pawar’s NCP faction to reunite with Sunetra Pawar’s camp before joining the NDA. The talks have gained weight after the NCP(SP) signalled a softer stand on the proposed delimitation bill.
The political landscape in Maharashtra is set for another churn? Over the past week, rumblings have grown louder of the wily and unpredictable Sharad Pawar sending feelers to the BJP.
However, the BJP leadership is not keen on accommodating the NCP (SP) into the NDA as a separate entity, and wants it to reunite with the Sunetra Pawar-led NCP before becoming part of the alliance, sources said. The BJP has also ruled out the possibility of the NCP (SP) being merged within the party.
The BJP has also dangled a carrot – if the two NCP factions reunite, one ministerial berth at the Centre from each faction could be considered at a later stage. Ever since the Shiv Sena and the NCP suffered splits, the BJP has emerged as the dominant player in Maharashtra. It is well aware that bringing the NCP (SP) as a separate entity into the alliance might lead to instability and insecurity among its present allies.
HOW MOVE WILL BENEFIT BJP IN PARLIAMENT?
The development comes at a time when the NCP (SP) has indicated that it might take a softer stand on the delimitation bill, which the government has tied to the women’s reservation legislation. The constitutional amendment bill seeks to increase the number of Lok Sabha seats to 850.
For the BJP, the NCP (SP)’s entry into the NDA will take it closer to a two-thirds majority in Parliament – a requirement for the passage of constitutional amendment bills. It is precisely the reason why the Narendra Modi government wasn’t able to pass the delimitation bill during the special session of Parliament in April.
However, the Parliament arithmetic has changed since then. Twenty Trinamool MPs have merged with a little-known outfit, Nationalist Citizens Party of India (NCPI), and backed the BJP-led NDA. Six MPs from the Uddhav Thackeray faction have also joined the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena.
The NCP(SP) has eight seats in the Lok Sabha and one in the Rajya Sabha.
However, the NCP(SP) has stopped short of issuing any formal statement of support. Earlier this week, Baramati MP Supriya Sule underlined that if the proposed delimitation was based on a uniform 50% increase in seats across all states, there would be “little reason to oppose it”.
Sule, however, dismissed speculation of the party preparing to cross over to the NDA. “The media has been predicting my swearing-in and ministerial portfolio for the past 12 years,” she said.
On Saturday, Sharad Pawar only added grist to the rumour mill. “That’s not the subject to talk about right now,” he said.
Buzz of a political realignment started after Sharad Pawar recently met Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde. Moreover, senior leaders from both factions of the NCP also held secretive, late-night meetings with Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis earlier this week. Jayant Patil attended the meeting from NCP(SP).
However, Sule said Patil sought an official appointment with Fadnavis to discuss action taken against the party’s municipal council president.
The hush-hush developments did not escape the Congress’s eye. Former Union Minister P Chidambaram claimed that the BJP was attempting to secure the support of the NCP(SP) and the DMK for the proposed delimitation bill.
Amidst the developments, one person is unhappy. That is NCP chief Sunetra Pawar. Sources said the buzz of the NCP(SP) being brought into the NDA fold has made Sunetra uncomfortable.
The NCP itself is facing an intensifying power struggle after Ajit Pawar died in a plane crash in January. The latest discord is over a section preferring MP Parth Pawar, son of Sunetra and Ajit, be recommended for a Union Cabinet berth. However, Rajya Sabha MP Praful Patel and Maharashtra NCP chief Sunil Tatkare have also staked claim. It has only laid bare the factionalism in the NCP.
Will Sharad Pawar, the wily old fox, script Maharashtra’s next great plot twist and join the NDA? Will the NCP factions unite? Only time will tell.
