NCP MLA Lanke says he is with Sharad Pawar faction

Nationalist Congress Party MLA Nilesh Lanke on Thursday said he was with the Sharad Pawar faction and was following the ideology of the opposition stalwart.

Lanke, who is MLA from Parner in Ahmednagar district, was presumed to have sided with the faction led by Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar following the split in the Sharad Pawar-founded party in July last year.

Incidentally, on Wednesday the BJP renominated sitting MP Sujay Vikhe Patil from Ahmednagar, from where Lanke too is keen to contest.

Lanke, who came to meet Sharad Pawar with a large number of supporters, later addressed a press conference with the latter.

He said he is with Sharad Pawar and following the ideology of the latter's party.

Meanwhile, Ajit Pawar admitted Lanke was disappointed due to local politics.

''I held a meeting with him yesterday. He had complained about a state minister (from Ahmednagar). I told him CM Eknath Shinde, deputy CM Fadnavis, the concerned minister and I will resolve the matter,'' Ajit Pawar said.

''I told him to stay where he is. He is an NCP MLA and the whip of the party applies to all. If he does something different, he will have to resign and then contest the (Lok Sabha ) election,'' the Deputy CM added.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)