While maintaining there were no misunderstandings within the tripartite Maha Vikas Aghadi coalition, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar on Tuesday slammed his allies, Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) leader Sanjay Raut and senior Congress leader Prithviraj Chavan for their comments against his party.
The NCP president, who recently took back his decision to step down as party chief, said he did not set much store by Mr. Raut’s opinions about the NCP expressed in the Sena mouthpiece Saamana. “He [Raut] is not aware of what work we do within the party. We are all colleagues within the NCP. Even if have different opinions, we never publicise them outside. The questions that we discuss remain confined within the party. My colleagues are conscious about taking the party forward,” said Mr. Pawar, in a pointed rebuke to Mr. Raut.
On Monday, an edit in the Sena (UBT)’s mouthpiece Saamana — whose executive editor is Mr. Raut — had said that Mr. Pawar had “failed to groom a political legatee” to take the party. The edit criticising’ Mr. Pawar is seen as a response to the NCP chief’s less than flattering remarks about Mr. Thackeray in the updated edition of his political memoir Lok Mazhe Sangati (people in my company), which was released on May 2.
