'Should have asked me': Ajit Pawar says would have brought whole party had 'CM post been offered'

Nationalist Congress Party leader and Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar on Wednesday said that he would have brought the whole party along had the Bharatiya Janata Party made him the same offer as incumbent CM Eknath Shinde of the Shiv Sena. The NCP leader, who broke away a chunk of the party following his rebellion against his uncle and Maharashtra stalwart Sharad Pawar, was addressing a gathering at a book launch in the presence of CM Shinde and Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis.

Pawar, who is currently part of the ruling Mahayuti government, has never kept his chief ministerial ambitions a secret. Speaking at the event, he said that he "trailed behind" despite being senior to both Shinde and Fadnavis in politics. "All went ahead and I trailed behind," he said, adding that he became an MLA in 1990, much before Fadnavis (1999) and Shinde (2004).

"I told a few people jokingly that when you (an apparent reference to the BJP) told Eknath Shinde to come along with these many MLAs and he would be made chief minister…..You should have asked me. I would have brought the entire party along,” quipped Pawar. "Whatever happens in life is destiny."

Notably, Pawar's remarks came just a day after his meeting with Union Home Minister Amit Shah in Delhi. During the meeting, Pawar reportedly urged Shah to finalise seat-sharing and allocate seats for the upcoming Assembly elections at the earliest. Earlier in May, Ajit had met Shah and demanded 80-90 seats for the NCP.