Patel contended in Nagpur on Saturday that during when the MVA government was being formed in 2019, the NCP had sought to share the post of CM with Thackeray, but “he took it lightly and did not respond”.
Reacting to this, Shiv Sena (UBT) Deputy Leader Sushma Andhare said those who have broken their parties “will now say anything to justify their actions”, save their own positions and to please their current masters.
“How can we believe such persons? Will they even deny that Patel and others did not have probe by Enforcement Directorate and other central agencies? Now they are trying to throw mud on others,” Andhare said sharply.
NCP National Spokesperson Clyde Crasto wondered what was the point of raking up such issues now of which nobody had heard, “so only he (Patel) should know”.
In a veiled attack at the NCP founder-President Sharad Patel but without taking names, Patel further contended that even in 2004, the NCP had sacrificed the CM’s post though it held more seats (71) compared with the Congress (69).
“Why rake up all this now… They have gone their own way with the government, the Shiv Sena (UBT) has also moved on. I can only say that the (Patel & Co.) should be more assertive in future and demand whatever positions they want from their new allies,” Crasto suggested.
Claiming that he met Thackeray, Aditya Thackeray and Sanjay Raut with the demand, Patel said he was deeply upset when they did not respond at all.
“We had 54 seats compared with Shiv Sena’s 56, so our demand was genuine and we were even prepared for a two-year CM post, but they did not utter a word,” claimed Patel.
This time, he assured that the NCP led by Deputy CM Ajit Pawar will not bow to anybody and demand seats in all districts during the next year’s elections in the state.
Patel said that the NCP could have prospered a lot if their leader had become a CM, but the party lost such opportunities in the past by ‘always surrendering’ – akin to what several leaders of the ruling Shiv Sena led by CM Eknath Shinde have claimed in the past.
–IANS
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