Want to become CM, but get stuck as deputy: Ajit
25 Sep 2024
Nationalist Congress Party leader Ajit Pawar on Wednesday said that he wants to become Maharashtra's Chief Minister on Wednesday, but despite his efforts, he has not been able to advance beyond the Deputy Chief Minister position.
Pawar, who led a split within the NCP last year and joined the Mahayuti government, has held the Deputy Chief Minister role a record five times.
'Party leadership squandered chance...'
Missed chance
Speaking at the India Today Mumbai Conclave, he remarked, "I want to become the Chief Minister, but I am not being able to move forward. I am not getting the chance."
The Deputy CM added that the NCP had an opportunity to claim the CM's post after the 2004 Maharashtra elections, but the party leadership ceded the position to the Congress.
"The NCP got a chance in 2004, but the party leadership squandered it," Pawar said.
Will contest upcoming polls under Mahayuti alliance: Ajit
Political path
In 2004, Sharad Pawar-led NCP emerged as the single largest party with 71 seats while its ally Congress stood second with 69 seats and the Congress's Vilasrao Deshmukh was appointed as chief minister.
Pawar added that he would contest the upcoming Maharashtra elections as part of the Mahayuti alliance, saying that the seat-sharing arrangement would be determined based on the results of the 2019 polls.
