Don’t think Uddhav will take extreme stand: Sharad Pawar

Nationalist Congress Party SP president Sharad Pawar on Friday expressed the hope that Shiv Sena UBT chief Uddhav Thackeray would not take any extreme stand after the latter hinted at his outfit going solo in the upcoming local body elections in MaharashtraHe maintained that though Thackeray has expressed his opinion on fighting local body polls other constituents of the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi MVA feel the issue should be resolved amicably among allies The MVA comprises the Congress NCP SP and Shiv Sena UBTSpeaking to reporters in Kolhapur the former Union minister said the Maharashtra government signing MoUs with Indian companies at Davos during the World Economic Forum and projecting them as investment was misleadingldquoUddhav Thackeray had also expressed sentiments about going solo in the elections Two days ago he had a detailed discussion with me regarding this and what he said on Thursday during a Shiv Sena melava gathering reflects his opinion But I do not think he will take any extreme standrdquo said Pawar when asked about Thackerays commentsAddressing workers on the 99th birth anniversary of Shiv Sena founder Bal Thackeray in Mumbai on Thursday Thackeray said he has been talking to the party rank and file and they want the party to contest the upcoming local body polls independentlyldquoAre you ready to show the traitors their place Elections are yet to be announced Let me see your preparations and I will decide as per your wish I will decide at the appropriate timerdquo the former CM told the workersSelective criticismAsked about Thackerayrsquos criticism of deputy CM Eknath Shindeled Shiv Sena on the issue of Hindutva Pawar said his ally had been repeatedly asserting that their Shinde factionrsquos Hindutva was not genuine and he just reiterated that claim during the Mumbai eventldquoBoth Shiv Sena factions held programmes to mark the birth anniversary of Balasaheb Thackeray with each faction asserting their claim to his legacy However if attendance is considered Thackerayrsquos rally appeared to have a larger turnoutrdquo he insistedAsked about Thackeray making critical remarks on Union Home Minister Amit Shah during his speech but sparing Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and if this indicated thawing of ties between the two statelevel political rivals he maintained he did not agree with that interpretationldquoOpposition leaders in Maharashtra are taking note of Amit Shahrsquos speeches as his tone often comes across as extreme It is expected that a home minister would maintain a balanced approach but that is not reflected in his speechesrdquo he saidDoubts about DavosOn Industry Minister and Shiv Sena leader Uday Samantrsquos remarks from Davos that some Opposition MLAs and MPs are in touch with the ruling bloc the veteran politician wondered about his purpose of visiting the Swiss town which hosted the World Economic Forum WEFldquoThey remarks left me wondering whether he was there to attract investments for Maharashtra or to poach Opposition leaders His statements in Davos were not in alignment with the chief ministerrsquos stated purpose for the visit to sign MoUsrdquo Pawar addedThe Rajya Sabha member asserted that MPs and MLAs of the Shiv Sena UBT were unlikely to leave the Opposition party as they knew which faction represented the true legacy of Bal ThackerayOn the Opposition criticising the Maharashtra government for inking MoUs with Indian companies at WEF Pawar said it is every governmentrsquos responsibility to create a conducive atmosphere for investments in the state and if such efforts are being done there is nothing wrongldquoBut projecting investments from investors who are already present here in Maharashtra looks like an eyewash or misleadingrdquo the former Union minister saidPawar said he came to know about Bharat Forge signing an MoU with the state government and pointed out the company is based in PuneThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever