Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar on Thursday chaired a meeting of the party's working committee which expressed “full faith and confidence” in him, and approved his decision to expel “Praful Patel, Sunil Tatkare and nine NCP MLAs who have joined hands with the BJP”. Ajit Pawar and eight other NCP MLAs were sworn in as ministers in the Maharashtra government on July 2. “I am the president of the NCP. Someone may issue a statement and say anything, that does not mean anything,” Pawar said after the meeting. “I will work more effectively now, whether 82 or 92,” he said, a day after Ajit Pawar said that he should retire. Pawar said the working committee meeting was held at his residence here “as per the party constitution”. “We will rebuild the party,” he said. “We have full faith in the Election Commission. As far as the legal position is concerned… we can think about that option, but I don’t think the need will arise,” he said. While it has been reported that Ajit Pawar had approached the EC on June 30 seeking recognition of his faction as the real NCP, and the poll panel on Wednesday received about 40 affidavits dated June 30 from NCP MPs, MLAs and MLCs expressing support for Ajit Pawar, the NCP founder said: “I did not know that important papers took five days to travel from one place to another in this country.” Dismissing the rival camp’s claim that they had the support of two-thirds of the MLAs, Pawar said the EC would decide. “But I know one thing, that the people have extended their support to us,” he said. In an eight-point resolution adopted after the two-hour meeting, the working committee empowered Pawar “to initiate necessary action against those who are acting against the political ethics, guidelines, principles, policies and ideology of the party and whose actions are detrimental to the interest of the party”. It also expressed “deep concern” over the situation in Manipur. “NCP stands against the undemocratic and unconstitutional actions of the BJP government and misuse of government agencies against the Opposition,” it said. It also “condemned the government policies resulting in spiralling inflation, unemployment and women's plight”. Senior party leader P C Chacko said the working committee has the support of the party's 27 state units. “All the state unit chiefs were present today at the meeting except five, who sent their support through letters,” he said. Meanwhile, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday met Pawar at his residence in an apparent show of support.
