The opposition alliance, also comprising the Congress and Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray Sena, had again called for a meeting Wednesday to resolve the impasse over the seat as the Uddhav Thackeray-led Sena delayed its decision.
On Tuesday, NCP (SP) leaders Jayant Patil and Supriya Sule met Thackeray where they tried to convince him to drop his party’s reservations over sending Pawar to the upper house of Parliament.
ET earlier reported that the UBT Sena was miffed because of the NCP (SP), after the death of Ajit Pawar, claimed that it was to merge with the NCP faction of the late leader who was part of the ruling alliance.
UBT Sena leader Aaditya Thackeray, while talking about the Rajya Sabha seat last week, had indicated his party’s displeasure over the issue. “Our two MPs in the Rajya Sabha (Sanjay Raut and Priyanka Chaturvedi) are raising issues in Parliament. They are working as part of an India alliance. We don’t know who is in the alliance or not; we are strongly there with the Congress and fighting (the government),” he said Thursday.
Sources from the UBT Sena said the party wanted a commitment from the NCP (SP) that it would not merge with the other faction of the NCP that would make it a part of the NDA.
Patil on Wednesday seemed to give in to this demand by claiming that the merger issue was a closed chapter. “There is no talk of a merger now. It was Ajit Pawar who was insistent on a merger and with his unfortunate death, the conversation has stopped, the merger will not happen now,” Patil told reporters. “I don’t think our two allies are bothered with the talk of a merger; the issue is over now.”Pawar’s claim to the Rajya Sabha had strengthened as the MVA had enough feelers from the BJP camp that if it did not agree on his name, then the saffron party might field a fifth candidate.
The BJP has the numbers for four candidates and has nominated Vinod Tawde, Ramrao Wadkute, Maya Ivnate and Republican Party of India Leader Ramdas Athawale. Anyone other than Pawar would have been seen as a weak candidate and the BJP could have used it as an opportunity to create a division within the opposition bloc.
Later in the evening, Congress leader Vijay Wadettiwar said his party’s top brass had asked legislators to support Pawar’s candidature.
