NCP held talks with BJP in 2017 on Sharad Pawar's orders: Ajit Pawar-led faction
NCP on Thursday claimed that it would have had a government with the BJP from 2017 itself and that the move was backed by NCP president Sharad Pawar at that time. The NCP, which was in opposition from 2014 to 2019, had entered into talks with the BJP to form a coalition government in 2017, claimed Maharashtra NCP president Sunil Tatkare of the Ajit faction.
«In 2017, Ajit Pawar and I were asked (by Sharad Pawar) to form a government with the BJP.
Discussions went on for 7-8 months (between BJP and NCP), we talked about Lok Sabha seat sharing, the portfolios to be given to NCP and even the guardian ministers were agreed on. However, for some reasons, the government could not take shape or else we would have formed a government with BJP in 2017 itself,» revealed Tatkare.
The NCP leader was addressing the party workers during a two-day conclave held at Karjat in Raigad.
While Ajit had earlier made a similar claim, Tatkare's revelation is interesting because it also reveals that the BJP and NCP were in talks for months in 2017 and had also decided on how many Lok Sabha seats the two parties would contest on.
Speaking on the sidelines of the conclave, Tatkare said that talks of Ajit Pawar becoming the chief minister of Maharashtra are premature as the BJP, Shiv Sena, NCP alliance is looking at getting 45 seats in the parliamentary polls.
