Ajit Pawar Advocates Independent Contests for Mahayuti Alliance in Local Elections

Maharashtra Deputy CM Ajit Pawar announced that Mahayuti allies, including his faction of the NCP, are free to contest local body elections independently. This move, he argued, would strengthen their respective cadres. Despite being allies in the Lok Sabha and state assembly, the Mahayuti members can pursue independent paths in local elections.

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar has asserted that Mahayuti members, including his faction of the NCP, have the liberty to contest local bodies elections independently.

Addressing Nationalist Congress Party workers in Pimpri Chinchwad, Pawar emphasized that independent contests would fortify the cadres. ''Even though we are allies in the Lok Sabha and state assembly, Mahayuti members are free to contest local bodies polls independently,'' he affirmed.

The election schedule for local bodies, which encompasses municipal councils, nagar panchayats, and zilla parishads, is yet to be announced. The ruling Mahayuti alliance, led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, includes Shiv Sena, BJP, and the NCP led by Ajit Pawar. Notably, Pawar's stance comes after a Marathi weekly linked to the RSS criticized the NCP's alliance with the BJP for negative public sentiments against the saffron party, contributing to the BJP's setbacks in Maharashtra's Lok Sabha polls.

(With inputs from agencies.)