Mumbai, Jan 31 (IANS) In a series of significant revelations following the tragic death of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar in a plane crash, senior NCP(SP) leader Jayant Patil on Saturday claimed that the two factions of the Nationalist Congress Party were on the verge of a formal merger.

According to Patil, the reunification was not just a political strategy but was “Ajit Dada’s final wish” to remove the stigma of the party’s split while Sharad Pawar is still politically active.

Confirming statements made by Sharad Pawar earlier on Saturday in Baramati, Patil noted that the merger was almost finalised and was scheduled for a formal announcement on February 12.

“It was decided on January 16 to announce the merger after Zilla Parishad polls, on February 8. But since I was to attend a wedding in Delhi, Ajit dada said that ‘whatever date you decide we will announce the merger.’ So, we decided on February 12,” said Patil.

He further added, “Ajit Pawar had told us that he had informed Praful Patel, Sunil Tatkare, Chhagan Bhujbal and other leaders of his party about the plans for merger.”

“Ajit Pawar’s last wish was to see the merger of the two parties. Now, that Sunetra Pawar is taking over charge, if she decides to take a note of sentiments of party MLAs, only then that last wish can be fulfilled,” he added.

Patil revealed that around 10 high-level meetings were held over the last four months to discuss the merger. Notably, four of these meetings took place at Patil’s residence, where Ajit Pawar expressed a strong desire to reunite the family and the cadre.

“We were meeting frequently in recent weeks. On January 16, we met at my house to finalise election coordination. The goal was always to bring the NCP family back together. Now, we must face this new, challenging reality without him,” he said.

A crucial part of the plan involved contesting the upcoming Zilla Parishad elections under a single, unified symbol—the Clock.

Patil stated that Ajit Pawar wanted to test the waters of a unified front at the local level before the official merger.

“Ajit Pawar used to tell me that all of his legislators are with him in his decision. There will not be any opposition to his decision of merger,” he noted.

Patil expressed deep grief, stating that the sudden plane crash in Baramati has “interrupted” a process that was nearly at the finish line.

“If Ajit Dada were alive today, the political map of Maharashtra would have looked very different by next week,” he said.

Even as Jayant Patil speaks of reunification, the Ajit Pawar faction is moving ahead with its own administrative transitions.

Sunetra Pawar, Ajit Pawar’s wife, will be sworn in as the Deputy Chief Minister today to maintain the faction’s stability within the Mahayuti government.

While Patil and other NCP(SP) leaders like Eknath Khadse and Anil Deshmukh have been vocal about these talks, the Ajit Pawar-led faction has remained tight-lipped.

Senior leaders Sunil Tatkare and Chhagan Bhujbal have refused to comment on the merger, stating that their current priority is filling the leadership vacuum and supporting the Pawar family in their grief.

–IANS

sj/rad