Rebel Praful Patel on Sharad Pawar's ‘don't use my photo’: 'Will always...'

livemint.com:

Maharashtra political crisis: Ajit Pawar faction Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader, rebel, and formerly Sharad Pawar's closest aide Praful Patel countered his ‘mentor and Guru’ statement that only the party of which Pawar senior is president and Jayant Patil the Maharashtra unit chief should use his photograph. Earlier, Sharad Pawar imposed a blow to the Ajit Pawar faction of defectors and said that those who "betrayed" his ideology should not use  his photograph.  Later, Praful Patel said, "Sharad Pawar is our mentor and Guru...we will always respect and regard him and his position, he is a father figure to all of us.

We are using his picture not out of disrespect, but we are showing our reverence towards him" The verbal battle of pride between the split NCP leaders arose two days after Sharad Pawar's nephew Ajit Pawar and eight other MLAs of the Nationalist Congress Party joined the BJP-Shiv Sena government in Maharashtra. "Only the party of which I am the national president and Jayant Patil the state president can use my photograph," Pawar senior told reporters in Mumbai.

In his lifetime, it was his prerogative to decide who should use his photograph, he said.  "Those who betrayed my ideology and with whom I have ideological differences cannot use my photograph," the veteran leader added.  Incidentally, Pawar's photo was seen at the new office of the Ajit faction in south Mumbai which was inaugurated on Tuesday.  The Ajit Pawar faction has removed Jayant Patil as state NCP president. Patil, on the other hand, has submitted a petition to the Assembly Speaker seeking to disqualify Ajit and his associates.