Sharad Pawar hints he may not seek another term as MP

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Hinting at retirement from parliamentary politics, Nationalist Congress Party (SP) chief Sharad Pawar on Tuesday said he will have to think about whether he should seek another Rajya Sabha term after his current tenure ends in 2026.

According to news agency PTI, while speaking at a campaign rally for grand-nephew Yugendra in the Baramati Assembly Constituency's Supa area, 83-year-old Sharad Pawar said he has to stop at some point and make way for the new leadership.

The veteran politician has won 14 elections during his political career. He first entered the Maharashtra Assembly in 1967 and was made a minister in the state government five years later.

"With your support, I first went to the state assembly. I became a minister of state and [then] the cabinet minister. I became chief minister four times and worked as defence minister at the Centre. Later, I worked as agriculture minister for 10 years, and today I am in the Rajya Sabha," said Sharad Pawar, while addressing the rally.

Some years ago, he decided not to contest the Lok Sabha elections as he wanted to give the responsibility to a new leadership, he said.

"I decided that I will not be involved in the local politics here and gave all the responsibilities to Ajit dada (nephew Ajit Pawar). For the past 25-30 years, he had all the responsibilities. For the first 30 years, I was there, later Ajit dada was there for another 25 to 30 years and now there is a need to make arrangements for a new leadership," he said.

Yugendra Pawar to contest against uncle Ajit from Baramati

The NCP faction headed by Sharad Pawar has given ticket to Yugendra, who would be taking on his uncle and deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar in Baramati in the November 20 Maharashtra Assembly elections. Ajit Pawar split the NCP last year and joined hands with the ruling Shiv Sena-Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) alliance.

According to PTI, Sharad Pawar also said that some development took place when he was holdings positions of power.

"I did a lot of things. I waived farm loans of Rs 70,000 crore, worked to increase the prices of agriculture produce, facilitated agriculture exports, gave women opportunities in the armed forces while working in the defence ministry," he said.

Women were given 50 percent representation in local bodies when he was Maharashtra chief minister, Pawar noted.

He blamed his nephew Ajit, the incumbent Baramati legislator, for failing to address the issue of water scarcity in this region of western Maharashtra.

"When I was the Chief Minister of the state, I approved the Janai Shirsai (water lifting) project in Baramati. The responsibility for carrying out the work was handed over to the next leadership (Ajit Pawar). Unfortunately, he did not complete the project," Sharad Pawar claimed.

Will continue to work for the people: Sharad Pawar

He added that new leadership was needed to finish the unfinished tasks.

"I can only give one assurance. I am not in power. I am in the Rajya Sabha, and I have one and a half years left on my term. After that, I will have to decide whether to return to the Rajya Sabha. I will not contest the Lok Sabha elections, nor will I stand for any other election. I have contested 14 elections so far and every time, you have made me victorious, which is why there comes a time to step back. And that is why I have started working towards bringing in a new leadership," he said.

However, he clarified that this did not mean he would retire from public life.

"I will not be in power, but I will continue to work for the people, for the drought-affected regions, and for the marginalised sections of society," Sharad Pawar said.

The veteran leader first contested and won the assembly elections from Baramati in 1967, representing the constituency until 1991, when he was appointed defence minister in the PV Narasimha Rao government. He has won Lok Sabha elections seven times during various stages of his career and was elected to the Rajya Sabha in 2014. He is currently serving his second term as a member of the Upper House of Parliament.

His daughter, Supriya Sule, has represented Baramati in the Lok Sabha since 2009.

Baramati witnessed a family dispute for the first time in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, when Ajit Pawar's wife, Sunetra Pawar, contested against Sule. The assembly constituency will now see a contest between Ajit Pawar and his nephew.

(With PTI inputs)