Mumbai: As the Ajit Pawar-led Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) launched the Jan Sanman Yatra — a statewide campaign aimed at reinventing the party’s image ahead of the Maharashtra assembly polls — last week, the party chief invoked the “Shiv-Phule-Shahu-Ambedkar” ideology and assured supporters that the party would never give up on it.
Speaking on the second day of the yatra at Yeola town in Nashik, Ajit said, “We are not clinging to power. Power can come and go, but when we have power, it should be used for the betterment of the society. This is the teaching we got from Yashwantrao Chavan. Our party stands by the ideology of Shiv-Phule-Shahu-Ambedkar. We have not given up on this ideology and we will not leave it till we die. This is my word to you.”
Ajit’s NCP is purportedly trying its best to emphasise that despite joining hands with parties which subscribe to a Hindutva agenda, such as the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena, the faction has not deserted the NCP’s original secular ideology.
The Maharashtra deputy chief minister has repeatedly referred to this ideology during the ongoing campaign, besides interacting with several Muslim voters.
Announcing the party’s ‘Constitution Assembly and Preamble Reading Mission’ for Independence day, he had written in a post on X: “The main objective of this activity is to show respect for the preamble, which is the soul of the Indian Constitution, to awaken the Constitution in every household and to show the commitment of the Nationalist Congress Party to its ideals.”
शिव- शाहू – फुले आंबेडकरांच्या कार्याला आणि विचारांना स्मरून, राष्ट्रवादी काँग्रेस पक्षाने १५ ऑगस्टला, स्वातंत्र्यदिनानिमित्त 'संविधान सभा आणि प्रस्तावना वाचन अभियान' हाती घेतले आहे.
भारतीय संविधानाचा आत्मा असलेल्या प्रस्तावनेप्रती आदर व्यक्त करणे, घराघरात संविधानाचा जागर करणे… pic.twitter.com/CsaKzNOyPc
— Ajit Pawar (@AjitPawarSpeaks) August 13, 2024
Political analyst Abhay Deshpande told ThePrint that for Ajit Pawar, it is crucial to keep the original NCP vote bank intact. According to him, Muslims do not care about a particular party, they only look at “BJP plus allies”.
“It is evident from the Lok Sabha results that they haven’t looked at Ajit Pawar any differently. They consider BJP and allies as one,” Deshpande said.
“He wants to minimise the damage that may have been caused by going with the BJP. He wants to maintain his original identity. He must have been hoping that MLAs can cater to the core vote bank with their own charisma… the way Muslims voted for Sunil Tatkare bucking the rest of the trend,” he added.
In this year’s Lok Sabha polls, Ajit Pawar’s NCP had contested four seats, but could only win one.
Another political expert, Prakash Akolkar, told ThePrint that despite his outreach efforts, there would not be much of an impact.
“After aligning with the BJP, Ajit Pawar must have realised how his core voters have drifted away. He is trying to appeal to them. But minorities have made up their mind to vote for anti-Modi forces,” he said.
Also Read: From credit wars with Shinde to hinting at CM ambitions, what’s behind Ajit Pawar’s muscle flexing
Muslim outreach
The Muslim outreach programme is not new. Even during the campaign for Lok Sabha polls, back in February, Ajit had attempted to reach out to the community, trying to assure Muslim voters that his ideology had not changed despite joining hands with the BJP and that as long as he remained in power, he would not allow any injustice against them.
From inducting former Congress leader Baba Siddiqui to declaring his intention of constructing an Urdu school in Baramati, Ajit had attempted to remind voters about his “secular credentials”.
However, the Muslim vote bank shifted to Maha Vikas Aghadi, as reflected by the election verdict.
Even on the foundation day of the NCP in June this year, Ajit was reminded by senior party leaders that the drubbing in the elections was partly because minorities did not vote for them. In response, he had asked his party workers to appeal to the “core voters and remind them of the party’s ideology”.
However, the faction’s vice-president, Saleem Sarang, told ThePrint, “Lok Sabha and Vidhan sabha are different. During Lok Sabha elections, a narrative was set that the Constitution would be changed. It won’t work this time around. Ajit Pawar stands for development. And Muslims should realise that.”
On 8 August, the Maharashtra Cabinet decided to establish a new ‘Minority Research and Training Institute’ (MRTI), along the lines of Babasaheb Ambedkar Research and Training Institute (BARTI) and Chhatrapati Shahu Maharaj Research and Training and Human Development Institute (SARTHI).
Even in the state budget, the deputy CM announced that students from minorities would get scholarships to pursue education abroad. He also announced that the state government had substantially increased the share capital for the Maulana Azad Minority Corporation to Rs 1,000 crore.
Ajit also commented on the Waqf Bill, which has now been sent to a Joint Parliamentary Committee, in a speech during the ongoing Jan Sanman Yatra. He said, “The bill has been sent to the JPC, where both ruling and Opposition parties will be present. Our party has decided that if any proposal is unacceptable to you (Muslims), we will discuss it with you. And I promise you that I will not allow any injustice against the minority.”
वक्फ बोर्डवर अथवा अल्पसंख्याक समाजावर कोणत्याही प्रकारचा अन्याय होऊ देणार नाही. हा दादाचा पक्का वादा आहे.#जनसन्मान_यात्रा#JanSanmanYatra pic.twitter.com/oCAwnyw2Xq
— Ajit Pawar (@AjitPawarSpeaks) August 12, 2024
Sarang said that despite allying with the BJP, Ajit is able to work for the development of the minorities. “In fact, since there is no Muslim MLC (member of legislative council) in Vidhan Parishad, Ajit dada has assured that next time, he will field a Muslim candidate. No other leader is working for Muslims the way Ajit Pawar is.”
Deshpande said that to secure his political position, Ajit needs to keep the 40-50 MLA number intact.
“The BJP voter is a bit reluctant about Ajit Pawar. The voter naturally shifts to Shinde, but doesn’t shift to Pawar as easily. And so, if he doesn’t even get his original vote bank nor the votes of his alliance, it will be a problem for him,” he said.
(Edited by Mannat Chugh)
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