Even as Sharad Pawar, the chief of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP-SP), hinted at giving a bigger role to the party's state president Jayant Pawar, visuals from a rally in Sangli are going viral for another reason.
In the rally, party workers were seen shouting slogans like "Maharashtracha Mukhaymantri Jayant Patil" (Maharashtra's CM Jayant Patil).
However, the rally was filled with laughter when Jayant Patil asked the worker to stop, casually saying, "Aye, gap bas."
This led to laughter both on stage and in the audience. Patil did not stop there; he said, "Don't say all this, it takes a huge amount of effort to reach there," in Marathi: "Ashya ghoshana deu naka, tya sathi khup utha-basha kadhavya lagtat." He also smirked and said, "Asach bolun hot nasta." The statement also brought smiles to Sharad Pawar and other leaders on stage.
On social media, Patil's comment was seen as a veiled jab at current deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis.
Fadnavis's catchphrase "mi punha yein" (I will return again), gained popularity during the 2019 Maharashtra Legislative Assembly campaign. However, the three-decade-old ally of the BJP, Shiv Sena President Uddhav Thackeray, broke with the BJP and formed the Maha Vikas Aghadi administration with the NCP-Congress combination, shattering Fadnavis' hopes of becoming chief minister once more.
His efforts of trying to form a government with Ajit Pawar were also in vain.
The new Maha Yuti government, however, came to power after the Shiv Sena split in June and July of 2022. Eknath Shinde, who defied Thackeray, was appointed Chief Minister, and the BJP high command invited Fadnavis to serve as Deputy Chief Minister.
Meanwhile, addressing a public rally in the Islampur assembly constituency in Sangli district of Maharashtra on Wednesday, Sharad Pawar said, "The bad picture of Maharashtra needs to be changed. We want a different Maharashtra. If I say 'different Maharashtra,' that means one in line with the vision of the first Chief Minister Yashwantrao Chavan. To make such a state, many have made sacrifices like Vasant Naik and Rajaram Bapu, etc. They all wanted a powerful and strong progressive state. But the people who are in power currently do not even think in the interest of Maharashtra." He also pointed out that the situation today is such that the state is trailing at a low level in all sectors.
The new Maha Yuti government, however, came to power after the Shiv Sena split in June and July of 2022. Eknath Shinde, who defied Thackeray, was appointed Chief Minister, and the BJP high command invited Fadnavis to serve as Deputy Chief Minister.
Ajit Pawar defied his mentor and uncle, Sharad Pawar, in June and July of 2023 and marched to the NDA camp to take the position of Deputy Chief Minister.
