BJP Wants ‘Pawar vs Pawar’ Fight to End Baramati Legacy: Rohit Pawar

Pune: NCP (SP) leader Rohit Pawar on Thursday said that no one in Baramati wants to see a ‘Pawar against Pawar’ battle in the 2029 assembly polls, but some people aligned with the NCP are supporting such a contest as they want to end the legacy of the Pawar family.

He was apparently targeting the BJP, which headed the Mahayuti government in Maharashtra and shared power with the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena.

The NCP is currently headed by Deputy Chief Minister Sunetra Pawar, who took over the reins of the party after her husband Ajit Pawar died in a plane crash in January. Sunetra Pawar is in the fray as the Mahayuti candidate for the Baramati by-election, where voting will be held on Thursday.

Talking about speculations about a possible war between late Ajit Pawar’s son Jay and his cousin Yugendra Pawar in Baramati in 2029, Rohit Pawar said, “Contrary to the wishes of the people of Baramati, a Pawar-Pawar contest was held in the (recent) Lok Sabha and assembly polls.”

After casting his vote in the Baramati bypoll, he said, “Tomorrow, if Jay contests from his own party (NCP), then Yugendra Pawar of NCP (SP) may also enter the fray. In this scenario, a Pawar vs Pawar contest may happen in Baramati even if people do not want it.” he said.

Rohit, who represents Karjat-Jamkhed assembly constituency in Ahilyanagar district, added that neither the Pawar family nor the people of Baramati (among the Pawars) want such a fight.

“But some people affiliated with Ajit dada’s party definitely want to see a Pawar vs Pawar contest in 2029. This alliance aims to finish the legacy built here by (Sharad) Pawar saheb and Ajit dada, so they are hoping for such a contest,” he said.

He said the final decision (on the Baramati seat) will be taken by the parties concerned, but noted that the 2024 Lok Sabha and assembly poll pattern may not necessarily be repeated.

In the last Lok Sabha election, Sunetra Pawar (NCP) contested against MP Supriya Sule (NCP-SP) in Baramati. Şule won the election. Sunetra Pawar was later elected unopposed to the Rajya Sabha. In the November 2024 assembly polls, Ajit Pawar is challenged by his nephew Yugendra Pawar in Baramati. Ajit Pawar won the election by a huge margin of over one lakh.

Rohit Pawar claimed that Ajit Pawar wanted to unite both the NCP factions.

“If Ajit dada had been alive, the merger would have happened. If it had happened during his term, I can easily say that he would 100 percent become the chief minister of the state in 2029,” he added.

Speaking to reporters earlier, Ajit and Sunetra Pawar’s younger son Jay Pawar said, “There is a demand and wish among the people here that I should contest the assembly elections in Baramati in 2029, but I will continue to work as a party worker and serve the people.”

However, Ajit Pawar’s younger brother Shrinivas Pawar termed the comments made by both Rohit Pawar and Jay Pawar about the Baramati seat as “unfair”.

“They have their own views, but there is no need to talk about something that will happen in 2029,” he said.