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Ahead of the Maharashtra assembly elections, Ajit Pawar's Nationalist Congress Party on Tuesday faced a major setback as over 600 party workers and officials from the Pune city unit resigned.
They were protesting the Governor's decision not to grant an MLC post to Pune City president Deepak Mankar.
Notably, on the same day, the Election Commission of India announced the dates for the state assembly elections.
Supporters of Mankar gathered at the NCP office in the Narayanpeth area of Pune city on Tuesday evening and held a meeting, where they announced their resignation.
This mass resignation includes city vice presidents, assembly constituency chiefs, various cell heads, and party workers.
The Pune city unit had demanded Mankar's appointment to one of the three MLC seats allocated to the party from the Governor's quota. However, the party chose to re-nominate those with existing family connections to politics.
The resigning office-bearers also prepared a memorandum to be submitted to party president and Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, expressing disappointment and disillusionment.
They stated that Mankar had strengthened the party in Pune and deserved the MLC seat, and the snub would weaken the party in future.
The memorandum reads, 'We believed Ajit Pawar would provide justice to party workers. However, by denying Deepak Mankar the MLC seat, our trust has been broken.'
Datta Sagare, vice president of NCP Pune City, said, "600 party workers resigned from their posts today in protest after Pune City President Deepak Mankar was denied the MLC post from the governor's quota by our top leadership."
"We have resigned from our posts but will remain in the party. We are hopeful that Ajit Pawar will give us justice. In the next two days, Ajit Pawar is expected to come to Pune, and we will hand over our resignation to him. Today, over 600 workers resigned, and the number is expected to rise to 2,500," Sagare added.
Nilesh Shinde, another party worker, stated, "We wish our leader Deepak Mankar gets a chance to hold a higher post. He has been working for the party since 2014 and has been in politics for over 40 years. He is capable enough to strengthen the party cadre in Pune, but he has always been denied higher positions."
The resigning office-bearers have vowed not to work for the party's alliance partners until Pawar provides a clear assurance.
The Election Commission of India on Tuesday announced that the assembly elections in Maharashtra will be held in a single phase on November 20 and the votes will be counted on November 23.
On Tuesday, seven MLCs were sworn in after the government released a list recommending candidates from the ruling Mahayuti alliance.
Out of seven sworn-in MLCs, three are from the Bharatiya Janata Party and two each from Shiv Sena and NCP.
The NCP nominees include former MLA Chhagan Bhujbal's son Pankaj Bhujbal and Idris Naikwadi.
The Shiv Sena nominees are former MLC Manish Kayande and ex-Lok Sabha MP Hemant Patil.
The BJP MLCs are its state women's wing chief Chitra Wagh, state general secretary Vikrant Patil, and spiritual leader of the Banjara community Dharmaguru Babusingh Maharaj Rathod.
A total of 12 posts for MLC have been vacant under the Governor's quota since 2021, when MahaVikas Aghadi was in power.