Dismissing ongoing speculations about a merger of the Nationalist Congress Party (SP) with the Congress, NCP (SP) working president Supriya Sule on Friday stated that no such proposal had been exchanged between the two parties. She added that they will continue to work together as allies.
The NCP (SP) and the Congress are part of the Opposition alliance Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) in Maharashtra as well as the INDIA bloc at the national level.
“The NCP (SP) is not involved in any merger talks. We have neither received any proposal from the Congress nor have we given them any proposal regarding a merger,” PTI quoted Sule as saying.
She further noted that both the political parties share cordial relations and regularly engage with each other over political matters.
“Whenever I come to Delhi, I seek an appointment to meet (Congress MP) Priyanka Gandhi, and we discuss political, social and economic developments in Maharashtra,” said the Lok Sabha MP from Baramati in Pune district.
Notably, Sharad Pawar, father of Sule, had co-founded the NCP in 1999 after parting ways with the Congress. In July 2023, the party suffered a major split when former Deputy Chief Minister late Ajit Pawar joined hands with the ruling Shiv Sena-BJP in Maharashtra.
Later on, the Ajit Pawar-led faction went on to retain the party name and symbol, while the group headed by Sharad Pawar came to be known as the “NCP (SP).”
Meanwhile Supriya Sule also clarified that her party had no intentions of joining the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA).
Her statement came after rumours within state political circles triggered by a recent meeting between NCP(SP) chief Sharad Pawar and Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde.
“Nobody is talking to us, and we are not talking to anyone. The question of aligning with the BJP has not even crossed our discussions,” Sule said. “These news reports are strictly confined to newspapers and television channels.”
She has even refuted claims made by senior Congress leader and former Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan that some NCP(SP) lawmakers were disgruntled.
“All our MPs are in regular contact. We meet frequently, discuss strategies, and there is absolutely no resentment or dissatisfaction within the party,” she said.