Pawar asks why upcoming state polls not being held together, says no truth in what PM utters

NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar on Saturday wondered why the upcoming state elections are not being held simultaneously despite Prime Minister Narendra Modi pushing for 'one nation one election'. Speaking to journalists in Nagpur on the sidelines of an event, the 82-year-old politician said there is no "truth in what PM Modi says".

Modi in his Independence Day speech had pitched for 'one nation one election', he said.

The Election Commission on Friday announced three-phase polls in J&K and a single-round voting in Haryana in September-October. It said assembly elections in Maharashtra, which were held along with Haryana in 2019, will be announced later due to security requirements for J&K.


"Election dates in two states (J&K and Haryana) have been announced but polls in Jharkhand and Maharashtra have not been declared. Hence, there is no truth in what he (PM Modi) says," said the NCP (SP) chief.

The opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) allies Shiv Sena (UBT) and the NCP (SP) had earlier criticised the Election Commission over the poll schedule and said it seemed the BJP-led Mahayuti wanted more time to "fool" the people of Maharashtra with its fake promises.

To a query about tensions in Nashik and Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar over alleged objectionable remarks by Hindu religious leader Ramgiri Maharaj against Prophet Mohammad and Islam, Pawar said it is not in the interest of society.

The religious leader has said that he made the statement in reaction to the atrocities against Hindus in Bangladesh.

"There is a need for peace today, and society and politicians should be patient and cautious about it," Pawar said. The responsibility of the government and the home department should be fixed, he said. About the regime change in Bangladesh, Pawar said that there have been some reactions to it in a few places in India. "However, we never felt that reactions would come from Maharashtra on what happened in Bangladesh," he added.