Ajit Pawar rejectedthe claim and asked, "Would I have waited for 10 years to join the BJP if I was blackmailed"
Jayant Patil. File Pic
Maharashtra NCP (SP) president Jayant Patil has claimed that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) used the alleged 'irrigation scam' for 10 years to blackmail Ajit Pawar, evoking rebuttals from Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and the NCP chief, reported the PTI.
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Jayant Patil made the claim in a newspaper interview on Saturday, ahead of the Maharashtra Assembly election 2024.
Ajit Pawar, who broke away from the undivided NCP and joined the BJP-led Mahayuti alliance last year, rejected Jayant Patil's remarks, according to the PTI.
Speaking to reporters in Baramati, from where he is contesting the Maharashtra Assembly polls, Ajit Pawar asked, "Would I have waited for 10 years to join the BJP if I was blackmailed."
Meanwhile, Devendra Fadnavis said Jayant Patil should not be taken seriously.
"Look at his face. He is always smiling. What he says should not be taken seriously," said the senior BJP leader, as per the PTI.
The alleged irrigation scam surfaced ahead of the November 20 polls after Ajit Pawar on Tuesday claimed that he was 'backstabbed' by his close colleague and former state home minister and NCP leader RR Patil who ordered an open inquiry against him.
He claimed that a file mentioning RR Patil's remarks ordering an inquiry into the alleged irrigation scam was shown to him by Devendra Fadnavis after the latter became the chief minister in 2014.
Ajit Pawar made these claims while addressing a rally for the Nationalist Congress Party candidate Sanjay Kaka Patil who is in the fray against the late Patil's son Rohit from Tasgaon in Sangli district.
Ajit Pawar was the water resources development minister during 1999-2009 when the Congress-NCP combine was in power in Maharashtra.
The Sharad Pawar-founded NCP split after Ajit Pawar's rebellion last year.
Ajit Pawar subsequently got the party's name and the 'clock' symbol.
Sharad Pawar now heads the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP SP), a constituent of the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) which also comprises the Congress and the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT).
Polling for the 288 seats in the state for Maharashtra Assembly election 2024 will be held on November 20 and votes will be counted on November 23.
(with PTI inputs)
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