Amid speculation that Sunetra Pawar, wife of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister and rebel NCP leader Ajit Pawar, could contest the Baramati Lok Sabha seat in the 2024 election, current Baramati MP Supriya Sule said “an invisible power from Delhi” was attempting to cause divisions within the Pawar family and Maharashtra’s politics.
Ms. Sule is the cousin of Mr. Ajit Pawar, who broke away from Sharad Pawar’s Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) to align his rebel NCP group with the ruling Eknath Shinde-BJP government in July this year.
Since then, there has been intense speculation that Mr. Ajit Pawar would pit a family member against his cousin, three-time Baramati MP Ms. Sule.
“An invisible power from Delhi is trying to create bitterness in our family and Maharashtra politics,” said Ms. Sule today, in Baramati.
Ms. Sule’s jibe is directed towards the Central government, say political observers.
According to the political grapevine, Paarth Pawar — Ajit’s son or Mr. Pawar’s wife, Ms. Sunetra, are the possible candidates against Ms. Sule, who is Mr. Sharad Pawar’s daughter. The BJP, which has been making strenuous efforts to breach the impregnable Baramati constituency, feels that it may finally have a chance with Mr. Ajit Pawar having joined the ruling government.
Ms. Sule said that neither she nor her family knows who is contesting against her in Baramati.
“We are living in a democracy and someone is going to contest against me. I have won from Baramati thrice and I welcome anyone who wishes to contest against me. Instead of copying and passing the exam, it is better to pass on merit,” she said.
