Ajit Pawar admits mistake: 'Society doesn't like...'

Noting that society doesn't like rifts in families, Nationalist Congress Party leader and Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar said he had already admitted his mistake, an apparent reference to the electoral contest between his wife Sunetra and cousin Supriya Sule in recent Lok Sabha polls.

Notably, this is the second time in less than a month that Pawar publicly admitted that he had made a mistake by fielding his wife against Sule and noted politics shouldn't enter the home.

The "admission" of mistake came against the backdrop of poor performance by the NCP, one of the constituents of the Mahayuti alliance, in its maiden general elections after the split in the undivided party.

Addressing the Jansamman rally organised by NCP in Gadchiroli city on Friday, Pawar tried to discourage party leader and state minister Dharmarao Baba Aatram's daughter Bhagyashri from crossing over to the Sharad Pawar-led NCP-SP.

Speculation is going around about a potential contest between Bhagyashri and her father in the upcoming assembly elections.

"Nobody loves a daughter more than her father. Despite giving her away in marriage in Belgaum, he (Aatram) stood by her in Gadchiroli and made her the president of Zilla Parishad. Now you (Bhagyashri) are set to fight against your own father. Is this right?" he asked the gathering.

"You should support your father and help him win because only he has the capacity and determination to develop the region. The society never accepts breaking one's own family," Pawar said.

This is like breaking the family, he said referring to the rift between Bhagyashri and her father over her political move.

"Society doesn't like this. I have experienced the same and accepted my mistake," Pawar said.

The NCP led by Ajit Pawar suffered a severe drubbing in Lok Sabha polls losing three of the four constituencies, including Baramati, it had contested. In contrast, the Sharad Pawar-led faction won 8 out of 10 seats.

Aatram, an MLA from Aheri in Gadchiroli district, sided with Ajit Pawar.

"Aatram's daughter learnt politics from the father. Aatram was the "vastad" (master) in politics who always kept one move close to his chest and played it at the appropriate time. Like a vastad, Aatram too doesn't teach everything to his pupil," Pawar quipped.