Nationalist Congress Party's senior leader Ajit Pawar joined the Maharashtra government as CM Eknath Shinde's deputy on Sunday. After Pawar, senior NCP leaders Dilip Walse Patil, Chhagan Bhujbal were among other eight leaders to take oath as ministers in the Shinde cabinet.
Nationalist Congress Party Sharad Pawar disowned Ajit Pawar and his rebellion and said the party did not endorse Ajit Pawar's action and it was his individual decision. Standing strong at the resolve of resurrecting the party and playing an important role in the united opposition in the 2024 Lok Sabha election, the 83-year-old leader said what happened today might be surprising for many, but not to him as he faced a similar situation in 1980 when all leaders of the party he was leading left and he resurrected the party. Sharad Pawar's press conference came minutes after Ajit Pawar claimed that he had the support and the blessing of everyone behind joining hands with the Shinde-Fadnavis government. I will never say that my home has split, this issue is not regarding my home, this is the issue of people. I am worried about the future of those who left. I want to give the credit for this to PM Modi. Two days ago, he had made statements and after that statement, some people started feeling uneasy, some of them were also facing ED actions," Sharad Pawar said.