Sharad Pawar urges Opposition to regroup, focus on holding ruling alliance accountable

NCP (SP) president Sharad Pawar on Saturday said the Opposition should not lose heart over its rout but go back to the people who do not seem to be enthused by the massive victory of the BJP-led Mahayuti in the Maharashtra election.

The Opposition’s priority would be to ensure that all the election promises made by the ruling alliance, including increasing the financial assistance to women under the Ladki Bahin scheme from Rs 1,500 to Rs 2,100 are implemented at the earliest, he said.

“It is true that we have been defeated. We should not fret over it, but go back to the people, as no enthusiasm is visible among the people about the election results. There is a lot of resentment,” the senior politician said at a press conference here.

The ruling BJP-NCP-Shiv Sena alliance won 230 of the 288 seats in the November 20 election.

The Opposition’s strength in the assembly is low but many young Opposition MLAs will show their mettle after a couple of sessions, Pawar said.

Samajwadi Party’s state chief Abu Asim Azmi announced that his party would withdraw from the Opposition’s Maha Vikas Aghadi alliance. This decision comes after the Shiv Sena (UBT) published a newspaper advertisement praising those responsible for demolishing the Babri Masjid. When asked about this development, Pawar downplayed its significance.

The central leadership of the Akhilesh Yadav-led party was of firm view that Opposition’s unity is necessary, he said.

Opposition parties cannot demand that a Leader of Opposition must be appointed as they do not have the required numbers, Pawar said.

None of the Opposition parties, including Pawar-led Nationalist Congress Party (SP), Congress or Sena (UBT) individually have the minimum 29 MLAs  — 10 per cent of the assembly’s strength — to be eligible to get the post.

Pawar, however, noted that in the 1980s, when his own party was reduced to just 6 MLAs following defections, he still became the Leader of Opposition for a year followed by Mrinal Gore and Nihal Ahmed as the Opposition decided to rotate the post.

To a question about the row over a wad of Rs 500 notes being found in the Rajya Sabha, Pawar, himself a member of the Upper House, said there should be a probe as to how the bundle made its way to the seat of an MP (Congress’ Abhishek Manu Singhvi) who is an established and renowned lawyer.