NEW DELHI: Maharashtra’s caretaker chief minister Eknath Shinde on Wednesday took a cheeky dig at his ally Ajit Pawar – reminding the NCP chief of an early-morning oath as deputy chief minister in 2019 for a stint that lasted just 4 days.
In 2019, when the undivided Shiv Sena of Uddhav Thackeray parted ways with the BJP over the chief minister’s post, Ajit Pawar rebelled against his uncle Sharad Pawar and joined hands with BJP’s Devendra Fadnavis to form a government in an early-morning operation that caught everyone by surprise. However, the government lasted for only 4 days as Ajit Pawar failed to muster the support of NCP MLAs.
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On Wednesday, when the Mahayuti leaders met Maharashtra governor CP Radhakrishnan, the spotlight was on Shinde who had been upset over being denied a second term as Mahayuti chief minister and had still not cleared the air on assuming the role of deputy chief minister under CM-elect Fadnavis.
When reporters asked Shinde if he would take oath as deputy chief minister along with Ajit Pawar in Mahayuti 2.0, the Shiv Sena chief said “Wait till evening … .”
However, Ajit Pawar, who was sitting next to Shinde, interjected to say that he was definetely taking oath tomorrow along with Fadnavis. “Sham tak unka samajh aayega (We will know about Shinde by evening), I will take it (oath), I will not wait,” Ajit Pawar said.
Ajit Pawar’s readiness to take oath as deputy CM evoked an instant response from Shinde, who responded with a cheeky dig: “Dada (Ajit Pawar) has experience of taking (oath) both in the morning and evening.” While this evoked laughter all around, it did remind everyone of Ajit Pawar’s failed rebellion against Sharad Pawar in 2019.
Shinde then was part of undivided Shiv Sena under Uddhav Thackeray – who had plunged the NDA into crisis by refusing to back Devendra Fadnavis as chief minister after their alliance had won a comfortable majority in the assembly.
While Shiv Sena and BJP shared a great rapport in Mahayuti 1.0, Shinde’s insistence on second term as Mahayuti chief minister after the 2024 assembly election results tested their bonhomie. In the last 11 days, when Shiv Sena made repeated claims for the top post, Ajit Pawar played his cards well and backed the BJP and Devendra Fadnavis to the hilt. While hectic negotiations were on, a Shiv Sena leader admitted that Ajit Pawar’s NCP had reduced their bargaining power vis-à-vis the BJP. Little wonder, Eknath Shinde’s remarks at Ajit Pawar may well be more than a light-hearted banter between allies.
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