Now, Ajit Pawar gives jitters to...Eknath, Devendra

NT Bureau, Agencies

Mumbai: Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar on Wednesday said he aspired to become the CM of the state and also took a jibe at NCP chief Sharad Pawar asking his 83-year-old uncle when will he retire from active politics, as the rebel leader appeared to be ahead in the numbers game for control of the NCP after its vertical split.

As the warring Pawar camps held separate meetings in Mumbai, the remarks by 63-year-old Ajit Pawar, who has never hidden his chief ministerial ambitions, is certain to unsettle Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, whose Sena-BJP coalition government completed one year last week.

"I was sworn in deputy CM five times. It is a record but the vehicle stops there, doesn't proceed further. I feel from the bottom of my heart that I should become pramukh (cm) of the state. I have some things which I want to implement and for that becoming pramukh (CM) is essential," Ajit Pawar told a meeting convened by him in Bhujbal Knowledge City in suburban Bandra.

As many as 32 of the 53 Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) MLAs attended the meeting called by the Ajit Pawar group, while 18 MLAs were present at the conclave addressed by Sharad Pawar.

Addressing separate meetings, Sharad Pawar criticised his nephew for joining the Shiv Sena-BJP government as they took jibes at each other over the octogenarian politician's age. Ajit Pawar, suggested that his uncle should give way for the younger generation.

“You are 83, aren't you going to stop?. Everybody has his innings. The most productive years are from 25 to 75 years. Give us your blessings and we will pray you live a long life," Ajit said.