Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar should have left the dais in protest in Shirdi or corrected Prime Minister Narendra Modi when he questioned NCP chief Sharad Pawar’s contribution to the farming community, said former State Minister Anil Deshmukh on Friday, October 27, 2023.
Mr. Deshmukh was referring to PM’s address in Shirdi on Thursday where he performed puja at the revered Saibaba temple and inaugurated a slew of developmental projects.
“Those doing politics of vote in the name of farmers have made you yearn for every drop of water. Some people in Maharashtra only did politics in the name of farmers. A senior leader of Maharashtra served as the country’s Agriculture Minister. I personally respect him, but what has he done for farmers?” Mr. Modi said, without naming Mr. Sharad.
The NCP founder served as the Agriculture Minister when the Congress-led UPA government was in office at the Centre (2004-14). Mr. Modi said when Mr. Sharad was the Union Agriculture Minister, farmers had to be at the mercy of middlemen.
Speaking to reporters in Nagpur, Mr. Deshmukh, who belongs to the Sharad faction of the NCP, said Mr. Ajit was sitting on the dais when Mr. Modi made the statement against their party founder.
“Ajit dada should have left the dais [in protest] or given proper information to the PM so that he could correct his statement [against Mr. Sharad Pawar],” said Mr. Deshmukh.
