Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar on Friday acknowledged that discontent among onion growers over issues related to the kitchen staple, including low prices, contributed in the dismal performance of the ruling Mahayuti in the recent Lok Sabha elections.
He said the Shiv Sena-BJP-NCP alliance had to "pay the price" for discontent among farmers in the onion growing belt of the state, including Nashik, where the ruling coalition fared poorly in the polls.
Pawar's statement came three days after Chief Minister Eknath Shinde admitted farm distress cost the Mahayuti alliance dearly and added, "Onions made us cry in Nashik, soybean and cotton in Marathwada and Vidarbha (in polls)." Talking to reporters in Pune, Pawar said they were constantly speaking about the need for support price for onion, and said the interest of both farmers and consumers should be protected.
He maintained the Mahayuti faced a beating in all Lok Sabha seats in the onion-growing belt barring Jalgaon and Raver.
A ban on onion export by the Centre in December last year to control retail prices led to protests by farmers, especially in the Nashik belt. The ban was eventually lifted in early May.
The Shiv Sena and its ally BJP lost Nashik and Dindori Lok Sabha seats, respectively. The alliance could only win one seat in Marathwada and just two in Vidarbha.
'Focussed on development'
When asked about the article published in the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS)-affiliated magazine Organiser after the Lok Sabha poll results, the NCP president said he does not want to speak on the issue.
"A lot of leaders are expressing their views and opinions after the polls. In a democracy, it is their right to express their opinions and I do not want to react to them. I have focussed myself on development, how we can provide additional help and complete more development works. My attempt will be on how we, as Mahayuti, can face the state assembly polls with new energy," he told reporters.
The article analysed the Lok Sabha poll results and called them a 'reality check' for "overconfident" BJP workers. It also had a reference to Maharashtra, where the BJP fared poorly as its seat tally came to down to nine from 23 in 2019.
"Maharashtra is a prime example of unnecessary politicking and avoidable manipulations. NCP faction led by Ajit Pawar joined BJP though BJP and split SS (Shiv Sena) had a comfortable majority. Sharad Pawar would have faded away in two-three years as NCP would have lost energy with infighting between cousins," it said.
"Why was this ill-advised step taken? BJP supporters were hurt because they had fought against this Congress ideology for years and were persecuted. In a single stroke, BJP reduced its brand value. After years of struggle to become numero uno in Maharashtra, it became just another political party without any difference," the article noted.
