Sunetra Pawar to take over as NCP chief soon, says Praful Patel; refuses to talk on merger buzz

Mumbai, Senior NCP leader Praful Patel on Friday said the immediate priority was to strengthen the party's organisation and rally begin Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Sunetra Pawar, who is set to take over as the outfit's national president in the next fortnight following the death of Ajit Pawar.

Sunetra Pawar is the sole candidate for the post and will formally take over as the party's national chief soon, Patel told reporters.

"Let us first focus on rallying behind Sunetra Pawar and complete the procedures within the party. We are also going to focus on strengthening the base of the party in the state in the coming period," Patel said while preferring to not comment on issues related to the merger of the NCP and Sharad Pawar-led NCP (SP).


The NCP working president further said the party's focus on strengthening its organisational base follows its recent performance in local body polls, including a stellar victory in Pune Zilla Parishad and gains in other ZPs such as Kolhapur, besides success in several panchayat samitis.

Incidentally, NCP (SP) Lok Sabha MP Supriya Sule had said in the Delhi that merger talks were underway with Ajit Pawar but added there was no point in reviving the matter following his sudden demise.

Patel and Sunetra Pawar had met Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Vice President C P Radhakrishnan in New Delhi recently.