A day after resigning as Maharashtra deputy chief minister, Ajit Pawar on Wednesday said he was with the Nationalist Congress Party, PTI reported.

Despite his rebellion and swearing in on Saturday, Pawar was welcomed with a hug from his cousin and Lok Sabha member Supriya Sule at the special session of the Maharashtra Assembly. “I was and am still with the NCP,” Pawar told reporters as he walked into the Vidhan Bhavan premises to take oath as MLA. “I never left the party.”

Pawar’s resignation on Tuesday led to the fall of the four-day-old Devendra Fadnavis-led government.

Advertisement

“I have nothing to say, I will speak at the right time,” Pawar added. “There is no reason to create confusion.”

Speaking to reporters, Sule said: “This day comes with a big responsibility”. She also greeted outgoing Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis warmly.

The resignations were set in motion with the Supreme Court verdict that asked Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari to ensure a floor test is conducted by 5 pm on Wednesday for Fadnavis to prove majority in the Assembly.

The leaders of the Shiv Sena, Nationalist Congress Party and the Congress met the governor late on Tuesday to stake claim to form the next government. The swearing-in ceremony of the new Uddhav Thackeray-led government will take place on Thursday at the Shivaji Park stadium.

Advertisement

Fadnavis was on Saturday morning sworn in as the state’s chief minister and Pawar as his deputy in a surprise development, hours after the Shiv Sena, NCP and the Congress finalised an alliance to form the government. The NCP had later said the decision to tie up with the BJP was Pawar’s alone, and the party officially wanted to go ahead with the Shiv Sena and Congress to form the government. His uncle, party chief Sharad Pawar, had even sacked him as the leader of the party’s legislature party.

Also read:

BJP’s gambit failed – but how long will unwieldy Shiv Sena-NCP-Congress alliance last?