'NCP’s strength revolves only around Ajit Pawar’: Pune, Pimpri Chinchwad election verdict a lesson; paves way for deputy CM to lead both groups

PUNE: Deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar used his political acumen to challenge the BJP on his home turf in Pune and Pimpri Chinchwad but the civic election results on Friday showed that he failed to make a dent. Though the verdict is not impressive for Ajit Pawar, political observers said it has opened new pathways for him to lead a united NCP, as merger possibilities look stronger now with the weakening of the Sharad Pawar-led NCP group at the grassroots.The day the municipal corporation polls were announced on Dec 15, chief minister Devendra Fadnavis declared that there would be no alliance between the BJP and the NCP in most of the 29 civic bodies. Although the NCP fielded candidates in most municipal corporations, party chief Ajit Pawar concentrated on the elections in Pune and Pimpri Chinchwad, focusing on regaining the bastion he lost to the BJP in 2017. He aligned with his estranged uncle Sharad Pawar’s NCP, but the alliance proved too weak to dislodge the BJP in both the municipal corporations in Pune district.Observers said the NCP’s strength revolves only around Ajit Pawar, while the organisational structure on the ground was already dented by the BJP.

Political analyst Parimal Maya Sudhakar told TOI , “Ajit Pawar took on the BJP during his campaign, but he did not have foot soldiers to fight his party's battle. He struggled to get candidates and ended up fielding some people with a criminal background.”The solace for the deputy CM was the alliance that he forged with NCP (SP) helped him gain acceptance among his uncle Sharad Pawar’s supporters. In contrast to the political situation that prevailed after July 2023, where they turned on Ajit Pawar for engineering a split in the party formed by Pawar and joining the Mahayuti, this time they accepted his leadership in the alliance.

While most of NCP (SP)’s senior leadership stayed away from campaigns, Ajit Pawar led the canvassing for both the parties.Political observers said that the election also helped Ajit Pawar gain acceptance from Sharad Pawar's supporters for a possible merger. “Though both parties have been claiming that the alliance was only for the municipal council polls, it helped them reduce the bitterness and created a mindset of working together.

The only positive that Ajit Pawar can take from this election is that his leadership will be accepted by the other group if they come together,” Sudhakar said.There is a silver lining for the NCP even though it finished as a runner-up in both civic bodies. With the Congress rapidly losing its ground in both Pune and Pimpri Chinchwad, the NCP can work towards garnering Congress’s secular vote bank before the 2029 elections.