Guessing Game Intensifies As Pawar & Fadnavis To Share Dais Once Again

NCP leader Sharad Pawar and Maharashtra’s deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis are scheduled to share dais on Sunday (Aug 13), once again giving rise to intense political speculation. Pawar’s latest proclamation that he will never align with the BJP is the reason for the guessing game as he is perceived to have acted differently than his public posture on many occasions. His fulsome praise of Prime Minister Narendra Modi on August 1 when the PM received the prestigious Lokmanya Tilak Award and the warm gesture of Modi towards his ‘old friend’ attracted intense political attention. This was remembered when the NCP’s both factions – Pawar and nephew Ajit – did not issue any whip for last week’s voting in the Rajya Sabha. The Congress and the Shiv Sena (Uddhav) keep on expressing their anguish at Pawar’s decisions but have refrained from issuing any ultimatum in view of Pawar’s stewardship of the Opposition I.N.D.I.A front. Pawar and Fadnavis will be present at Sangola in Solapur district for unveiling the statue of former minister Ganpatrao Deshmukh, who represented the constituency for five decades with only one defeat. Deshmukh was a member of Pawar’s first cabinet in 1978. Meanwhile, rumour mills are once again buzzing over chief minister Eknath Shinde’s future. Hence the scheduled presence of Pawar along with Fadnavis is indeed raising eyebrows.