Will ensure MVA contests LS and assembly polls together: PAWAR

Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar said on Monday that he will ensure that the Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) constituents fight the 2024 assembly and Lok Sabha elections as a team.
“My endeavour will be to ensure that the constituents of the MVA stay together, take joint decisions, and face the state assembly and Lok Sabha elections together,” Pawar said this in response to questions from reporters after meeting newly elected Congress MLA Ravindra Dhangekar in Pune.
Dhangekar, who was supported by other MVA constituents, the Shiv Sena (UBT) and the NCP, sprung a surprise earlier this month when he wrested the Kasba Peth seat from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). This is the first time the Congress has won the Kasba Peth seat in three decades.
The by-election was necessitated by the death of BJP MP Mukta Tilak. MVA leaders have since showcased Kasba Peth’s victory to underline that all three parties should contest state and national elections.
Asked whether the same principle would apply in civic polls as well, Sharad Pawar said his colleagues in the NCP were looking into the aspect. “In recent times, I have been in different areas. I am visiting the state, and people are telling me that they want change. They want us (the opposition) to come together. These are the sentiments of the people,” Pawar said.
Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar on Monday urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to take seriously the concerns raised by opposition leaders over the alleged ‘misuse’ of central agencies.
While addressing a press conference here, the former Union Minister took note of the opposition’s joint letter and said he was the first one to sign the letter to PM Modi.