Maharashtra: “Not a merger, only a return!”: Anil Deshmukh’s major statement amid talk of NCP reunification

New Delhi. Amidst speculation regarding a potential merger between the two factions of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), former Home Minister and NCP (SP) leader Anil Deshmukh has made a significant statement. He has explicitly ruled out any possibility of a merger between the two NCP factions. However, he added that anyone wishing to join his party would be welcomed.

Anil Deshmukh’s statement follows a recent claim by Sunil Tatkare, the Maharashtra state president of the ruling NCP faction. Tatkare had suggested that if the former Deputy Chief Minister and party president, Ajit Pawar, were still alive, the two factions would have merged in February of this year.

Speaking to reporters in Nagpur on Friday, Anil Deshmukh hit back at Sunil Tatkare’s remarks, accusing him of making contradictory statements. Deshmukh asserted that it had already been decided—while Ajit Pawar was still alive—that the NCP would withdraw its support for the BJP-led government and that the two factions would reunite.

Dismissing the speculation about a reunification, Deshmukh reiterated that there is no scope for a merger between the ruling NCP and the opposition NCP (SP). “If anyone wants to join our party, they are welcome,” he said. “However, there is no question of a merger.”

Tatkare’s stance shifted following Ajit Pawar’s passing
The former Home Minister noted that, following Ajit Pawar’s sudden death, Sunil Tatkare had previously claimed that the then-NCP president had not informed party leaders about any plans for the two factions to reunite. Deshmukh questioned why Tatkare—having made that earlier claim—is now asserting that a merger would have taken place on February 12th had Ajit Pawar been alive. It should be noted that Ajit Pawar passed away in a plane crash in Baramati, Pune district, on January 28 of this year.