Mumbai: “Party and family splits.” This WhatsApp status posted by NCP MP Supriya Sule on Saturday said it all. Her post read: “Whom to trust? The biggest cheating in my life. What did I receive in lieu of the support and love I gave to him? (sic)”
Later, an emotional Ms Sule broke into tears while speaking to the media.
It was not the first time that a dispute in the Pawar family came out into the open. Earlier, there were murmurs that not all was well in the family headed by NCP chief Sharad Pawar. The signs of conflict were visible on several occasions.
The last straw came when Ajit Pawar’s son Parth was defeated in the Lok Sabha poll from Maval constituency. Sources said Sharad Pawar was against giving a ticket to Parth. He even cancelled his candidacy from Madha constituency, arguing that it was no good to field so many candidates from a single family. Though Ajit Pawar tried hard to ensure his son’s victory, he did not succeed.
The emergence of Sharad Pawar’s grandnephew Rohit added further fuel to the fire as he was considered a political successor to the former Union minister.
“Ajit’s feud with Sharad Pawar and daughter Supriya intensified over the last few months, triggered by disputes over ticket distribution for the Lok Sabha and Assembly elections,” a source said.
After the Enforcement Directorate (ED) initiated action against Ajit Pawar, his uncle turned the tables by announcing that he would visit the central agency’s office to face inquiry. However, Ajit Pawar ruined his efforts as on the same day, he resigned as a legislator.
Later, he took a U-turn, claiming he had resigned as the ED tried to deliberately implicate his uncle. A hint that all was not well in the family emerged when Ajit Pawar stormed out of NCP’s meeting at Silver Oak, the elder Pawar’s residence, arguing that a scheduled meeting with Congress leaders had been cancelled and he was heading for Baramati, his Assembly constituency.
