Former Maharashtra minister Harshvardhan Patil officially joined the opposition NCP (SP) on Monday, shortly after resigning from the BJP. Patil was welcomed into the party in the presence of NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar.
Harshvardhan Patil, who currently serves as the president of the National Federation of Cooperative Sugar Factories, resigned from the BJP last week. Indapur, his political stronghold, falls under the Baramati Lok Sabha constituency. Patil met NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar in Mumbai on October 3, after which he revealed that Pawar encouraged him to join the party and contest the upcoming assembly elections, expected to take place next month. "He assured me that he would help get me elected," Patil claimed.
Speculations were rife that Patil, a former MLA from Indapur assembly seat, would switch sides, especially after NCP leader and Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar said those who won the seat last time will get to retain the seat. Patil, who has been elected as MLA four times from Indapur, has been aspiring to contest from the seat again.
Harshvardhan Patil served as a minister during the Congress-NCP alliance government from 1999 to 2014. After joining the Congress in 2009, he held the position of minister for cooperation and parliamentary affairs. Last week, state BJP minister Chandrakant Patil commented on Harshvardhan Patil’s departure, stating that he would regret his decision to join Sharad Pawar's party. He further remarked that those leaving the BJP are doing so because they realize they may not be fielded again for the upcoming assembly elections.