The Maha Coups: Sharad Pawar's googly vs Devendra Fadnavis's yorker

About a year ago, on June 30, 2022, Eknath Shinde was sworn in as Maharashtra chief minister with the help of BJP after he split with the Thackerays. The split in the Shiv Sena brought down the government of Maha Vikas Aghadi, an alliance of NCP, Congress and Shiv Sena (of Uddhav Thackeray). And exactly a year later, today in a dramatic turn of events, NCP leader Ajit Pawar, along with eight other party leaders, joined the Shinde-BJP government. Ajit Pawar took oath as the Deputy Chief Minister, a post he will share with BJP's Devendra Fadnavis.

Incidentally, in November 2019, Ajit Pawar was sworn in as the deputy CM for the shortest term as the government led by BJP's Devendra Fadnavis lasted just 80 hours. Fadnavis had to resign as CM shortly after Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Ajit Pawar quit as his deputy.

On his recent statement that the hurried swearing-in of Fadnavis as chief minister in November 2019 post the Assembly polls was a "googly" bowled by him to expose the BJP's lust for power, NCP founder Sharad Pawar said the BJP failed to understand his delivery.

"They (BJP/Fadnavis) never understood my 'googly'. They lost their wicket. They will not know it because only the bowler knows the technique of 'googly'," Mr Pawar had said recently.

But now, with the split in the NCP, Fadnavis seems to have delivered a 'yorker', according to political pundits.

Today, Ajit Pawar has also staked claim over Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), founded by his uncle Sharad Pawar. Addressing the media after the swearing-in, Ajit Pawar, 64, said that the entire NCP is with him and would contest elections under the NCP banner.

"The entire NCP is with me and we have joined the government as ‘NCP’. We shall also fight all the future polls – civic, Assembly, and parliament elections under the same name and symbol,” Ajit Pawar asserted.

“We have the blessings of all the seniors in the party, all the MLAs, MPs and leaders are with us."

Asked how the NCP could ally with the BJP, Ajit Pawar said if the NCP could join the Shiv Sena (of ex-CM Uddhav Thackeray), and the BJP in Nagaland, then it could also go with the Shiv Sena of Shinde and the BJP alliance in Maharashtra.

Ajit Pawar also praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi for leading the nation strongly ahead on the path of progress and development has earned laurels from all over the world.