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Saturday, January 3, 2026
TopicNCP

Topic: NCP

The NCP or Nationalist Congress Party was founded in 1999 by Sharad Pawar after he quit the Indian National Congress (INC) along with Purno Sangma and Tariq Anwar. While the NCP started as a national party with values of ‘Gandhian secularism’ and ‘progressive and modern progress’, its biggest electoral success has been in Maharashtra, Pawar’s home state. In 2023, the Election Commission withdrew the party’s status as a ‘national party’ as the NCP could no longer meet the criteria of such a designation.

As of 2024, the party is split into two factions — one led by founder Sharad Pawar and another by his nephew Ajit Pawar. The faction led by Ajit is in power in Maharashtra along with the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde). This faction today is knonw as the Nationalist Congress Party, having been granted the original party name and symbol by the Supreme Court. The other faction is called the Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar). Other important leaders include Jayant Patil, Supriya Sule, and Rajesh Tope.

NCP tried crop rotation with Manikrao Kokate’s elevation. Agri minister now in farmers’ crosshairs

Purva Chitnis -
NCP elevated Manikrao Kokate to council of ministers as counterweight to Bhujbal. But leadership is now miffed with him for walking into one controversy after another, it is learnt.

Fact Check: NCP protest against Aurangzeb film is falsely linked to Chhaava

ThePrint Team -
The viral photo is unrelated to Chhaava released in February 2025. It shows a 2013 protest by the NCP Minority Division, Aurangabad, against the Bollywood film Aurangzeb.

1995 cheating case filed by ‘arch nemesis’ returns to haunt Maharashtra minister Kokate

Purva Chitnis -
Mumbai: A court in Nashik Thursday sentenced Maharashtra Agriculture Minister Manikrao Kokate and his brother Sunil Kokate to two years’ imprisonment and a fine...

Many heavyweights dropped, Fadnavis expands cabinet with some old faces & several first-timers

Manasi Phadke -
39 ministers inducted in first Maharashtra cabinet expansion. Chhagan Bhujbal, Deepak Kesarkar, Abdul Sattar, Sudhir Mungantiwar out, Pankaja Munde, Nitesh Rane, Ashish Shelar in.

‘No point making allegation’. NCP chief Ajit Pawar responds to Aaditya Thackeray’s EVM remarks

ANI -
The Sena (UBT) leader had announced that the party’s winning MLAs will not take the oath in Maharashtra Assembly & voiced his concerns over the voting process.

Voters answer ‘real NCP’ question. Ajit Pawar ascendant, Sharad Pawar faction gets just 10 seats

Purva Chitnis -
Ajit-Pawar-led NCP had won 40 seats and was leading in one more as of 9 pm. Of 37 seats where the two factions faced each other, Ajit Pawar faction won 29.

Fate of 2 Muslim Mahayuti candidates opposed by BJP: Nawab Malik takes a battering, Abdul Sattar wins

ThePrint Team -
Local BJP unit had informed state leadership that it would not campaign for Sattar, while in Mankhurd Shivaji Nagar, the party had earlier announced it would not support Malik.

Battle of Baba Siddique’s son, Thackeray kin, ex-MLA’s widow makes Bandra East a must-watch seat

Purva Chitnis -
Trupti Sawant from MNS may decide fate of winner in this assembly constituency where Baba Siddique's son is sitting MLA. Plus, there are several Independents in the fray.

Modi’s ‘Ek hai toh safe hai’ has a special resonance for Maharashtrians. Don’t read it wrong

Abhishek Chaudhari -
Modi’s slogan echoes a historical call for unity, challenging divisive vote-bank politics and the Leftist-purogami narratives that focus narrowly on identity-based fragmentation.

Ajit Pawar’s NCP will emerge ‘kingmaker’ in Maharashtra, will join govt ‘on own terms’—Nawab Malik

Neelam Pandey -
In conversation with ThePrint, five-time MLA Nawab Malik also talks about his decision to join Ajit Pawar-led NCP and communally charged remarks by leaders of Mahayuti ally BJP.
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