Karjat: Claiming that 2019 would be the year of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), former Union Minister and senior party leader Praful Patel said on Monday that the party believes party chief Sharad Pawar could be the next Prime Minister.
Speaking on the first day of the party’s two-day conference at Karjat, Mr. Patel said, “The way present politics is going, it is possible that our wish can come true.”
Commenting on reports about the growing proximity between the BJP and NCP, Mr. Patel claimed former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee had invited Mr. Pawar to join the National Democratic Alliance (NDA). “Many of the secular parties joined NDA then. Mr. Pawar could have been Number Two, but he never betrayed his ideology. Despite this, questions have been raised over our stand; even our party leaders are confused. They should get rid of this confusion.”
Mr. Patel added that talks of NCP taking the Shiv Sena’s place, if the latter decides to withdraw support to the government, are not true. “Our opposition is clear: BJP and Sena are our opponents. Pawar saheb didn’t give a certificate to [Prime Minister Narendra] Modi, Mr. Modi himself came to him. Though our relationship with the Congress is sweet and sour, they are not our enemy.”
He added that had the Congress and NCP fought the elections together, they would have won 130 to 140 seats. “Lok Sabha and Assembly elections can be held simultaneously, and we have to be open-minded and ready with a concrete plan.”