NCP chief Sharad Pawar's comment suggesting that Congress's situation was now like impoverished landlords who have no land and can not maintain their houses evoked a sharp reaction from Maharashtra Congress chief Nana Patole on Friday. Speaking to reporters, Patole also made a veiled reference to Pawar's exit from the Congress over two decades ago.

"The leaders who were entrusted with power by the Congress eventually betrayed it," the state Congress chief said. "Congress was never a party of zamindars....Congress gave its land to several leaders for upkeep but they stole it over the years," Patole added. There will be a Congress prime minister in the country in 2024, he said. Speaking to Marathi news portal Mumbai Tak on Thursday, Pawar had said that there was a time when Congress had presence from Kashmir to Kanyakumari. But the party should now accept that it was no longer the case, he had said.