Maharashtra govt formation: 6 Reasons why Ajit Pawar could not have done it alone

When the nation woke up to the pictures and breaking news tweets that Devendra Fadvanavis was back as Chief Minister and Ajit Pawar as the deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra, there were several unanswered questions. Hours later Sharad Pawar and Praful Patel dismissed support to Ajit Pawar and Supriya Sule hinting there could be a split in both the party as well as the family. As India is witness to a political surprise, both the NCP and the Shiv Sena are reportedly heading for more defections.

On November 20, Sharad Pawar met the Prime Minister and claimed that it had nothing to do with the government formation in Maharashtra. Following the meeting which lasted for over 50 minutes, he tweeted that he brought to notice “the alarming situation” of Maharashtra crop damage to the PM. While there was speculation of something brewing between the BJP and the NCP at that point, even the most seasoned political analysts would have been unable to predict a BJP-NCP government with a broken political family as the centrepiece in the days to come.  

Here are 6 reasons why Maha Dy CM Ajit Pawar couldn't have managed this on his own

Reason 1: MLAs have submitted signatures to the Governor:

As per sources, the first big reason is that BJP leader Girish Mahajan reportedly stated Ajit Pawar submitted a letter with the names of NCP MLAs who approve the move, which, if true, would not have been possible without the support of the high command and the entire party. 

Reason 2: Sharad Pawar was cryptic on alliance with BJP:

On November 18, Sharad Pawar when questioned about a possible alliance with the BJP, said, “Humne election kiske khilaaf lade?” and “Isliye, kaise hum bol sakte hai”. This cryptic response sent a lot of people into a tizzy of speculation. However, what beamed through was that Pawar did not deny an alliance with the BJP despite being asked the question. 

Reason 3: Prashant Kishor factor?:

Sources told Republic World that Prashant Kishor was reportedly involved in bridging an alliance between NCP-Sena-Congress. Whether this factor contributed as a distractionary aspect and cloak for the real nuts and bolts in the works is still being speculated.

Reason 4: NCP MPs call for an alliance with the BJP

On November 20, media reports were rife with speculations of a possible NCP-BJP government after two NCP MPs were reportedly pursuing Sharad Pawar to form an alliance with the BJP. While there was no official confirmation of there being an alliance brewing, the fact of the matter is that there were cadre within the party swaying towards the BJP even as the ‘Sonia Sena’ talks were on. 

Reason 5: Sharad Pawar was not keen on government formation Sena

Amidst the optics, press conference and statements in the public domain, it was observed by sources close to the party that Sharad Pawar didn’t seem personally keen on sealing the deal with Sena. On November 18, NCP Chief Sharad Pawar’s intent seemed to slip through. At a news conference that he addressed, after a Congress-NCP meeting, he was asked a question on government formation with the Shiv Sena and he was quoted as saying  “There was no talk on government formation in the State”. 

Reason 6: Ajit Pawar unwillingness on government formation with Sena

Ajit Pawar could not have done it alone because on November 13, amidst government formation murmurs and discussions on the Common Minimum Programme (CMP) with Congress party, Ajit Pawar had reportedly angrily stomped off and said “I don't know when it will take place” and added that he was heading to Baramati. In hindsight, this may have been a hint of the two sparring camps in the NCP as many as 10 days ago.