Ajit Pawar may have made an exit from the 13-year-oldDemocratic Front government in Maharashtra -- in the wake of the allegedirrigation scam, but it does not lessen the worries of the Congress or for thatmatter Chief Minister, Prithviraj Chavan. Pawar, 53, the nephew of Union Agriculture Minister and NCP supremo,Sharad Pawar, has already started hitting out at the Congress.
Available indications within the DF suggested that Chavanwould have to be wary of Ajit Pawar, as the latter would continue to be callingthe shots in the ruling NCP in his capacity as the Nationalist CongressLegislature Party (NCLP) leader.
The NCP has so far claimed that Ajit Pawar’s resignation wasa “conscience call” in the face of repeated allegations of a role in themulti-crore irrigation scam and was not a pressure tactic to scuttle a probeinto the scam. "He has set an example by resigning...this shows the highpolitical values," says NCP MLA Jitendra Ahwad, who is a close aide ofAjit Pawar.
Since last Tuesday, when Ajit Pawar decided to step down,the Congress had been extremely guarded. Despite having come under pressurefrom the Opposition and various quarters to accept the papers put in by thedeputy chief minister, Chavan kept on hold his resignation, mulling over theimplications of the move -- and till NCP came out officially on this issue. OnSaturday, his resignation was sent to Governor K Sankaranarayanan, who acceptedthe resignation of Pawar.
The NCP has been holding the Irrigation portfolio “ whichcame to be re-named as the Water Resources portfolio a few years ago “ eversince the Congress-led DF government came to power for the first time inOctober 1999. While Ajit Pawar headedthe ministry for nearly 10 years, another senior NCP minister Sunil Tatkaretook over the Irrigation from Ajit dada nearly two years ago.
Pawar on Sunday charged that allegations of financialirregularities in the awarding of irrigation contracts were being made againsthim to “divert” the people attention from the coal scam.
In an oblique but unmistakable reference to the Congress, hesaid: “The household expenditure is going up by the day. Till last month, theprice of a domestic gas cylinder was Rs 400. This month, the price of a gas cylinder has gone up to Rs 800. Similarlythe price of diesel has gone up by Rs 5 per litre since last month. Is not it?.Nobody talks about that… I have a reason to believe that allegations are beingmade against me to divert the attention of people from the coal scam”.
