So, what's happening with Sharad Pawar?

June 05, 2024 10:53

Sharad Pawar holds a meeting of the party's parliamentary board. File pic

Despite suffering a politically debilitating split in the NCP last year, veteran leader Sharad Pawar led from the front in the Lok Sabha polls in Maharashtra, where his party won eight of the 10 seats it contested, cementing his position as the tallest politician in the state.

The 83-year-old electoral battle hardened politician is a lynchpin for the anti-BJP opposition alliance at the national level and a key architect of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) in the state.

With its performance in the Lok Sabha polls, the Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar) has received a new lease of life in the state, where assembly polls are due in October.

The former Union minister, who has more than 50 years of experience in electoral politics, led the campaign for his party NCP (SP), which fought the polls on a new symbol -- a man blowing turha (a traditional trumpet) -- held strategy meetings and carefully selected candidates for the Lok Sabha elections.

The party contested 10 of the 48 Lok Sabha seats in Maharashtra in alliance with the MVA constituents Congress and the Shiv Sena (UBT), and won eight of them on Tuesday. It lost Satara and Raver. But the NCP (SP) candidate gave a tough fight to the BJP rival in Satara. Political analyst Prakash Akolkar said the NCP (SP) has produced an excellent strike rate (winning 8 of 10 Lok Sabha seats it contested) and it only goes to show which is the "real" NCP.

« Back to LIVE

TOP STORIES

LIVE! 1 dead, 66 rescued in ferry mishap off Mumbai coast

Maharashtra re-introduces Bill to curb 'urban Naxals'

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has re-introduced the Special Public Security Bill in the state assembly, aiming to combat 'urban Naxalism'. The bill, which seeks to criminalize activities deemed to disrupt public order, has...

Aide of Sidda's wife offered money: MUDA complainant

An RTI activist, Snehamayi Krishna, has alleged that a person claiming to be the personal assistant of Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah's wife, Parvathi B M, attempted to lure and pressure him and his son to drop their demand...

'He deserved a much better farewell'

With 765 international scalps in his bag, Ashwin is the second-highest wicket-taker from India after Anil Kumble.

Ashwin: Evolutionary, cerebral, never a one-trick pony

If one has to analyse Ashwin the cricketer, it is very difficult to ignore Ashwin, the person, who had a very independent mind and a brain that probably ticked 24x7. He believed in de-construction of his art and became craftier one ball...