Have not compromised on ideology, need power to serve people: Ajit Pawar
Satara, Apr 19 (PTI): Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar on Saturday said he has not compromised on ideology but asserted that one needs representation in power to serve people.
He was addressing a gathering in which Uday Undalkar, son of late Congress leader Vilaskaka Undalkar, joined the ruling Nationalist Congress Party.
"I haven't given up my ideology. To get development works done, one needs to have representation in power," Pawar said.
"In the next five years, we (government) plan to bring Rs 40 lakh crore investment in the state and generate employment for 50 lakh people. A total of 31 per cent of all foreign investment has come into Maharashtra," he said.
Asserting that Prime Minister Narendra Modi wants to make India a developed nation by 2047, the deputy CM said the Maharashtra government is committed to work for farmers and women.
The state government's flagship Ladki Bahin Yojana, under which women with an annual family income of less than Rs 2.5 lakh get Rs 1500 as monthly aid, will continue, Pawar reiterated.
He also said civic polls have not been held in the past three years, adding that the endeavour should to be to ensure maximum number of NCP corporators are elected.
Civic polls in several cities, including Mumbai, Pune, Thane, are due since early 2022.
Pawar split the Sharad Pawar-founded NCP in July 2023 and joined the then Eknath Shinde government.
In the 2024 assembly elections, NCP bagged 41 of the 57 seats it contested in alliance with BJP and Shiv Sena.
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Kerala polls: ‘People rejected 10 years of misrule’, says AICC gen secy
Thiruvananthapuram (PTI): AICC General Secretary K C Venugopal on Monday said the Congress-led UDF’s sweeping victory in the Kerala Assembly polls was a clear verdict against the “arrogance”, corruption, and nepotism of the CPI(M)-led LDF government headed by CM Pinarayi Vijayan.
Addressing a press conference as counting of votes for all 140 Assembly constituencies neared completion, Venugopal said the outcome reflected public anger against what he termed “10 years of misrule” by the Left government.
He claimed that Vijayan’s victory in his home constituency, Dharmadam, was “only technical”, alleging that the CM trailed the UDF candidate in the initial rounds of counting and failed to secure a majority in his own village.
“He just escaped. He suffered a setback even in his home turf. He was the only person who did not realise the people’s mood in this election,” Venugopal said.
Alleging that the CPI(M) and the LDF had resorted to “communal and opportunistic politics”, he further claimed that the ruling front had entered into a “secret understanding” with the BJP in a bid to retain power for a third consecutive term.
He said that when a government driven by power and arrogance attempts to align with anyone to stay in office, even its own cadre turns against it.
Referring to the results, Venugopal said that while the UDF expected rebel CPI(M) leaders, including K Kunhikrishnan in Payyannur, to impact the vote share, their victories came as a surprise.
Describing the UDF’s performance as a “historic victory”, he attributed it to coordinated teamwork, grassroots mobilisation, and the dedication of party workers, adding that the alliance accepted the mandate “with humility”.
Venugopal also credited Rahul Gandhi’s campaign guarantees, calling them a “trump card” that helped voters focus on real issues and reject what he described as the LDF’s “false narratives”.
He claimed that the Congress witnessed one of its lowest levels of rebellion in this election, which contributed to the alliance’s strong performance.
The senior Congress leader further alleged that the BJP managed to win two seats with the help of the CPI(M), and asserted that forces attempting to divide society on communal lines should “learn a lesson” from Kerala’s verdict.
“This is the real Kerala story,” he said.
On the question of the next Chief Minister, Venugopal said the party leadership would decide at the earliest after due consultations.
The counting of votes began on Monday morning for all 140 Assembly constituencies in Kerala, where the Congress-led UDF secured a decisive majority, defeating the CPI(M)-led LDF, which was seeking an unprecedented third consecutive term in office.
Congress MP Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) posts, "Thank you to my brothers and sisters in Keralam for a truly decisive mandate. Congratulations to every UDF leader and worker for a hard-fought, well-run campaign. As I said before, Keralam has the talent, Keralam has the potential… pic.twitter.com/6T4IZbEmp4
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) May 4, 2026
