Sharad Pawar will not join hands with BJP in his lifetime: Sanjay Raut
Mumbai (PTI): Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut on Wednesday claimed that Nationalist Congress Party president Sharad Pawar will not join hands with the Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) in his lifetime.
Talking to reporters, Raut further claimed a prime minister of the opposition INDIA alliance will hoist the national flag at the Red Fort in Delhi next year 2024 and the country is waiting for that "auspicious" moment.
"I don't think Sharad Pawar will join hands with the BJP till the time he lives. He is rebuilding his party," the Rajya Sabha member said.
Sharad Pawar's party is an ally of the opposition Shiv Sena (UBT) and Congress in Maharashtra.
A meeting between Sharad Pawar and Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, who is his nephew, at the residence of a businessman in Pune on Saturday has created a buzz in political circles.
Asked whether Ajit Pawar gave any offer to Sharad Pawar during the meeting, Raut said, "When did Ajit Pawar become so big to give an offer to Sharad Pawar."
"It is Sharad Pawar who made Ajit Pawar. Sharad Pawar has been the chief minister of the state for four terms and served as the Union minister multiple times," Raut added.
His remarks came days after an editorial in the Shiv Sena (UBT) mouthpiece 'Saamana' said the frequent meetings between Sharad Pawar and his nephew were tarnishing the image of the NCP founder.
The Marathi daily also said it is amusing that Ajit Pawar is frequently meeting his uncle and the latter is also not avoiding it.
After the meeting in Pune last month, Sharad Pawar and Deputy CM Ajit Pawar brushed it off saying it was not a secret meeting, amid overtures from the rebel NCP camp led by Ajit Pawar to senior Pawar to give them his blessings.
Speaking in his hometown Baramati on Tuesday, Sharad Pawar said some people in the party have taken a different path, but "once they realize the situation, their stand may change."
"Whether they change their stand or not, we will not deviate from the path we have chosen," he told a gathering.
"I have told Maharashtra (voters) to vote for someone. And now, I can not tell them to vote for someone whom we have opposed all along," Pawar senior added.
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TN CM Vijay calls fuel price hike ‘unacceptable’, seeks rollback
Chennai (PTI): Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay on Friday slammed the increase of Rs 3 per litre in petrol and diesel prices, calling it "unacceptable", and demanded its immediate rollback, claiming the revision would affect various sections of society.
He said oil marketing companies do not reduce prices in line with global crude price trends and "take the profits".
"Union government oil marketing companies have increased the price of petrol and diesel by Rs 3 per litre. This is not acceptable," Vijay said in a statement.
The hike has been effected after the "five-state polls" (four states and one union territory), he added.
This price rise will largely affect the income of the poor and middle class using two-wheelers and small vehicles, as well as others dependent on vehicles for their livelihood, the CM said.
It will ultimately result in an increase in the prices of daily commodities and also "affect the purchasing power of the poor," he added.
Citing the chain effect of the price revision, such as increased input costs for small units, he said it could lead to a "slowdown" in the market and exports.
"Therefore, I urge the union government to immediately roll back the price hike that will affect the poor and middle-class people and SMEs," Vijay added.
Global crude oil prices have surged more than 50 per cent since US-Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28 and Tehran’s subsequent retaliation, which disrupted energy flows through the Strait of Hormuz, a key artery for global oil shipments.
Petrol and diesel prices are now at their highest level since May 2022.
