‘Political Opponents, Not Enemies’: Shinde on Meeting Pawar
Deputy CM dismisses speculation over meeting with NCP (SP) chief; MVA allies offer differing reactions
GG News Bureau
Mumbai, 10th July: Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Friday defended his recent meeting with Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar) chief Sharad Pawar, saying political differences should not be treated as personal hostility.
Addressing the Maharashtra Assembly, Shinde said he welcomed Pawar as a matter of courtesy after learning of his arrival at the legislature.
“As soon as I learnt that Sharad Pawar had arrived, I rushed to welcome him with a shawl and a coconut. We are political opponents, not enemies,” Shinde said.
The remarks came two days after Pawar’s visit to Shinde’s office at the Assembly complex triggered widespread political speculation. Pawar had attended a meeting chaired by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on the Maharashtra-Karnataka border dispute before visiting the Deputy Chief Minister’s office, where he later held a meeting with NCP (SP) legislators.
The development drew criticism from Shiv Sena (UBT), with party leader Sanjay Raut initially questioning the meeting and stating that it could affect Pawar’s credibility. Describing Shinde as a “traitor”, Raut had said leaders of the Maha Vikas Aghadi should avoid giving him political legitimacy.
However, Raut later clarified that there was no disagreement with Sharad Pawar and described the episode as a misunderstanding. He maintained that while Pawar remained the tallest leader of the alliance, Shiv Sena (UBT) believed Shinde should remain politically isolated.
NCP (SP) leader and MP Supriya Sule dismissed the controversy, calling it a “storm in a tea cup.” She said the interaction between Pawar and Shinde was merely a brief courtesy meeting and rejected speculation about any move by her party towards the National Democratic Alliance (NDA).
Sule also said she had spoken to Sanjay Raut and that the misunderstanding had been resolved. She asserted that all eight NCP (SP) Members of Parliament remained united.
Meanwhile, senior Congress leader and former Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan suggested the meeting may have been pre-planned and hinted that political developments could be underway. He claimed he had received information suggesting attempts were being made to attract NCP (SP) MPs to the ruling alliance, though no official confirmation of such efforts has been made.
