Ajit Pawar Was Secular but Ran With the Hare and Hunted With the Hounds; His Legacy is Development

6 months ago 107

Ajit Pawar was secular but ran with the hare and hunted with the hounds; his legacy is development: Suhas Palshikar, Chief Editor, Studies in Indian Politics, to Karan Thapar for The Wire. ......................................... In an interview to discuss the politics, personality and legacy of the former Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra, Ajit Pawar, who died yesterday in an air crash, one of India’s foremost political analysts Suhas Palshikar says he was secular and did not indulge in the Hindu-Muslim “bashing” associated with the Pawar’s ally the BJP. However, Prof. Palshikar says that Pawar’s style of politics was akin to “running with the hare and hunting with the hounds”. In a 25-minute interview to Karan Thapar for The Wire, Suhas Palshikar, the Chief Editor of Studies in Indian Politics, says that history will remember Ajit Pawar for the work he did for the development of Maharashtra. In time the scams that were associated with his name or the alliance with the BJP will be forgotten or diminish in importance and what will be remembered is Pawar’s commitment to development. I will stop there. If you want to understand Ajit Pawar’s politics as well as his political strategies, his hold on Baramati and Maharashtra’s wider sugar-belt, his relationship with his uncle Sharad Pawar, his personal ambition, the future of his Party the NCP, the impact of the scams that were connected with his name, his alliance with the BJP, his personality and how history is likely to remember him then this is an interview I would suggest you should see. To help you, I will give you a list of the main questions put to Prof. Palshikar. Here they are: 1) Ajit Pawar was elected a record eight times from Baramati and he immersed himself in the development of his constituency and Maharashtra’s wider sugar belt. How do you believe he will be remembered by the people of Baramati? 2) But the truth is his NCP party performed poorly in the recent local elections in the Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad area. What’s the explanation for that and how much of a shock would that have been to him? 3) Ajit Pawar was not just the leader of his faction of the NCP but you could say he was the party. What impact will his sudden surprise death have on the party? Can it survive without him? 4) Ajit Pawar’s NCP has 41 MLAs. Who do you see as the likely new leader? Praful Patel? Or could the two factions of the NCP merge? Or might the Ajit Pawar faction merge with the BJP? 5) With 235 seats there is no immediate danger to the Mahayuti government but will Fadnavis appoint a new deputy chief minister from the NCP or because there’s no obvious candidate is that unlikely? 6) What sort of relationship did Ajit Pawar have with Devendra Fadnavis? As far back as 2019 he attempted to split the NCP to help Fadnavis continue as chief minister. Were they close as that suggests? 7) During the last five years Ajit Pawar became one of the most well-known of Maharashtra’s politicians. How much of a void does his death create in the state’s politics? 8) Let’s talk about him personally. He became deputy chief minister six times and was on two occasions willing to split his party for that job. Now I know all politicians are ambitious but was Ajit Pawar willing to breach political morality to achieve his ends? - “Running with the hare and hunting with the hounds”: Palshikar, IE, 29/1. 9) In the early part of this century his name was involved in an irrigation scam and he was forced to resign as deputy chief minister in 2012. Last year his son’s name featured in a land scam. What’s the truth about these scams? Was Ajit Pawar tarnished by them? 10) According to The Hindu (29/1) “he was not known to have personal friends or a personal life … (and) did not engage with the media either.” That’s very different to other politicians, isn’t it? 11) Finally what sort of relationship did he have with his uncle Sharad Pawar? And how was that affected by Ajit Pawar’s decision to split the NCP and ally with the BJP? 12) As a political scientist who’s closely followed Ajit Pawar’s career how will history remember him? Will it be kind? Or will there be a few rough edges to history’s judgement? - Secular: did not play the Hindu-Muslim card. Join The Wire's Youtube Membership and get exclusive content, member-only emojis, live interaction with The Wire's founders, editors and reporters and much more. Memberships to The Wire Crew start at Rs 89/month. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UChWtJey46brNr7qHQpN6KLQ/join

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