Mumbai: Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Sharad Pawar Tuesday warmly greeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi and shared the stage with him at an event in Pune where the latter was given the Lokmanya Tilak National Award — a development that has upset allies such as Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray).
Pawar, who is known to have friendly relations with Modi, shook the PM’s hands and patted him on the back as the two leaders met on stage.
This was the first time that the two leaders appeared on the same dais following the split in the NCP last month when Sharad Pawar’s nephew Ajit Pawar, along with a clutch of MLAs, rebelled against his uncle and joined Maharashtra’s ruling coalition of the BJP and Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena.
Deputy CM Ajit Pawar, who was also present at the function, was seated only five spots down the line from his uncle, with CM Eknath Shinde and Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis sitting beside him.
While Sharad Pawar did not make any direct political statements, he put forth certain aspects of the lives of Maratha warrior king Shivaji and freedom fighter Bal Gangadhar Tilak that are relevant to the opposition’s criticism of the BJP government.
The opposition frequently has accused the BJP government of being a one-man show centred around Modi and of using its power to repress the media.
The event comes at a time when opposition parties across the country are attempting to build a front — INDIA — against the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.
Ally Shiv Sena (UBT) criticised Pawar’s decision to attend the event as chief guest.
In its editorial in mouthpiece Saamana, the party said: “Sharad Pawar said he was invited to attend the programme as chief guest three months ago, so he will have to attend. But, before coming to Pune, the BJP broke the chief guest’s party and incorporated part of it within itself. If Sharad Pawar had remained absent (at the Tilak award function) to condemn this, then even the Sahyadri (mountain) would have praised his leadership and determination”.
Sharad Pawar’s faction of the NCP, however, remained unperturbed by the criticism. Clyde Crasto, the faction’s spokesperson, said his respect for the leader had risen manifolds by his decision to attend the event.
“He kept his promise to organisers of the Lokmanya Tilak National Award, attended the function despite having to share the stage with people responsible for breaking our party,” he said.
The award is given by the Tilak Smarak Mandir Trust — a trust that’s currently run by Tilak’s descendants — on 1 August each year, to mark the death anniversary of Tilak, one of India’s most celebrated freedom heroes. The award recognises an individual’s contributions toward the nation.
Its past recipients include former prime ministers Indira Gandhi, Manmohan Singh, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, and former presidents such as Shankar Dayal Sharma and Pranab Mukherjee.
The Tilak Smarak Mandir Trust’s decision to confer the recognition on Modi this year has been controversial, especially in light of the political affiliations of the trust members. Its vice-president, Rohit Tilak, is the Congress’s state general secretary and the decision to confer the award on Modi has sparked an internal battle within the party.
Meanwhile, as the event was still on, opposition parties held a black-flag protest against Modi in Pune.
Pawar congratulates Modi, PM invokes Tilak’s legacy
At the event, Sharad Pawar chose to focus on the historical importance of Pune as the land of Shivaji and Tilak, merely making veiled comments about the Modi government instead of making public statements about the current political situation.
In his speech, Pawar spoke about how, unlike other kings and dynasties, Shivaji’s rule was not known by its family, Bhosale, but was identified as the ‘Hindavi Swarajya’ and a kingdom of the people. He also made references to the 2016 ‘surgical strikes’ under the Modi government, saying that it was Shivaji who first implemented the concept.
While speaking about Tilak, Pawar spoke about how he identified journalism as “the most powerful weapon” to fight the British and founded two newspapers — Kesari and Mahratta. “Tilak used to say there should not be any pressure on journalism and that journalism should be free of interference,” he said. Critics of the Modi government frequently point out that press freedom has declined under its regime.
Wrapping up his speech, Pawar said: “Today Tilak Smarak picked PM Modiji for the award. This award has been given to Indira Gandhi, Balasaheb Deoras, Manmohan Singh, Atal Bihari Vajpayee and many others, and in this list now Narendra Modi’s name has been added and we are all happy about it. And on behalf of all of us, I would like to congratulate him”.
In his own speech, Modi spoke about Tilak’s work in his home state, Gujarat.
“During the freedom struggle for one and a half months he was in Ahmedabad Sabarmati jail. In 1916, Tilak came to Ahmedabad and at that time, more than 40,000 people came to welcome him, to listen to him, and in the audience there was Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel,” Modi said, adding that the speech inspired Patel — India’s first home minister — to install Tilak’s statue in Ahmedabad’s Victoria Garden when he was at the helm of the Ahmedabad civic body.
The PM also spoke about how India has moved “from a trust deficit to a trust surplus”, claiming that a survey had ranked India as among the countries with the most faith in the government. “Public trust is becoming a medium of progress for the people of India,” he said.
Later in the day, he flagged off two new Metro corridors in Pune.
“Different parties have come together to rule Maharashtra only because we want good work for Maharashtra, so that the state can develop faster,” he said at that event.
(Edited by Uttara Ramaswamy)
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