Sulking Bhujbal attends NCP convention at Praful Patel's request

Shirdi, Jan 18 (IANS) Former Maharashtra Minister and veteran NCP leader Chhagan Bhujbal, still expressing discontent over being excluded from the Devendra Fadnavis-led cabinet, attended the party’s two-day Sankalp Shibir in Shirdi on Saturday.

The event was organised to celebrate the NCP’s strong electoral performance in the recently held Assembly elections and strategise for the upcoming local and civic body elections.

Bhujbal, who has openly voiced his displeasure over being denied a ministerial berth, revealed that he participated in the convention only at the insistence of NCP working president Praful Patel. However, he noted that neither party president and Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar nor other senior leaders reached out to personally invite him to the meet.

“I attended because Praful Patel visited me and we spoke for two hours. State unit chief Sunil Tatkare also called and requested me to attend. But this doesn’t mean everything is resolved,” Bhujbal clarified.

Bhujbal, who skipped a meeting of legislators convened by Ajit Pawar last Tuesday and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s interactive session with legislators on January 15, maintained that his health remains a concern. “I will attend for a while, but I will not speak. My health is not good,” he stated, adding that there is no proposal to go to the Rajya Sabha and he has no intention to relinquish his Yevla constituency or his work with the Samata Parishad.

Asked if Ajit Pawar had personally invited him to the event, Bhujbal tersely responded, “No.”

Despite Bhujbal’s visible discontent, he downplayed the issue. “This is the party's meeting, not an individual’s,” he remarked, signaling that party unity remains a priority amid ongoing political tussle.

Notably absent from the convention was NCP Minister Dhananjay Munde, who is under fire from opposition parties over his alleged links to Walmik Karad, an associate implicated in the brutal killing of Massajog sarpanch Santosh Deshmukh in Beed district.

While opposition parties are demanding Munde’s resignation, Ajit Pawar has dismissed these calls, emphasizing that three investigative agencies are probing the case and no one will be spared.

In a significant move, suspended party legislator Satish Chavan, who had joined the Sharad Pawar-led NCP and contested the Assembly election from the Gangapur constituency, rejoined the Ajit Pawar camp at the Shirdi convention. The suspension against him has since been revoked.