BJP seems to have plans to destroy state-level parties: NCP chief Sharad Pawar

Sharad Pawar. File Pic/PTI

Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) president Sharad Pawar on Saturday said the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) appears to have plans to "destroy" state-level parties and weaken the Opposition, the PTI reported.

Days after his nephew Ajit Pawar and several other MLAs of the Nationalist Congress Party rebelled against him and joined the Shiv Sena-BJP government in Maharashtra, Sharad Pawar hit the road in an attempt to rally party workers behind him.

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Speaking to reporters in Nashik city, Sharad Pawar said that he has seen politics of former prime ministers Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi, Atal Bihari Vajpayee and P V Narasimha Rao, all of whom spoke (critically) about opposition parties but never sought to silence the Opposition, the news agency reported on Saturday.

"It appears that the BJP has plans to destroy state-level parties. They have done this in different places. In electoral democracy, the opposition party is as important as the ruling party. But the BJP's policy is to weaken the Opposition, Sharad Pawar said, according to the PTI.

The BJP knows what is in store for it and hence it is splitting up other parties to ensure majority in the Lok Sabha in 2024, Sharad Pawar said.

This is very detrimental to electoral democracy, Pawar added.

The NCP chief also said he does not consider those with whom he has differences of opinion his enemies.

Difference of opinion does not mean enmity, he said.

Meanwhile, Sharad Pawar on Saturday said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has spoken of massive corruption by NCP leaders, so he should punish those guilty, reported the PTI.

PM Modi has all the state machinery at his disposal. He should act against these leaders and punish them, Sharad Pawar said, addressing a rally at Yeola in Nashik district, according to the PTI.

Sharad Pawar's choice of Yeola, a small town located 250 km north of Mumbai, to begin his party rebuilding exercise is seen as the octogenarian leader's attempt to rebuild the party.

While addressing the BJP booth workers in Bhopal, Modi accused the Nationalist Congress Party of being involved in corruption worth Rs 70,000 crore.

At the Yeola rally, Sharad Pawar also asked rebel NCP leaders not to raise issue of his age, says he will continue to work for party workers.

Without naming Bhujbal, Pawar said, I erred in trusting some people, but won't repeat the mistake. I have come here to apologise for the same.

(with PTI inputs)