Pawar snub prompts Sena to hit back

Three days after NCP chief Sharad Pawar turned down Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray’s alliance offer, party mouthpiece Saamna hit back at him, alleging that he was compromising ‘‘self-esteem’’ for political interest.

In an editorial published today, Saamna came down heavily on Pawar for inviting Congress president Sonia Gandhi for NCP’s convention at Surat on June 9. ‘‘This is why we have been opposing Pawar. A few years ago, he raised a storm over Sonia’s foreign origin and today, he bends before her to safeguard his political interests,’’ it said.

Pawar had turned down the Sena chief’s offer to ‘‘join forces’’ in Maharashtra. Pawar said Thackeray and he would continue to be political rivals though they were good friends.