People of Maharashtra eager for political change; will be reflected in poll outcome: Sharad Pawar

Mumbai: NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar on Sunday said the people of Maharashtra are eager for a political change and expressed confidence that the sentiment will be reflected in the outcome of the upcoming state assembly polls.

Addressing a press conference here along with leaders of the other Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) constituents, Pawar claimed that the state administration, which was considered the best in the country, was demoralised under the Mahayuti regime.

"We want to make people free from the present government and I am confident they will support us," he said, adding that in the upcoming state elections, the MVA will repeat its Lok Sabha poll performance.

The Mahayuti comprises the Shiv Sena led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, BJP and Ajit Pawar's NCP.

Shiv Sena (UBT) president Uddhav Thackeray said there is a difference of only 0.6 per cent in the vote share of the Congress and BJP in the recently held Haryana assembly polls, still the BJP got more seats.

"Why is the Jammu and Kashmir elections result not discussed? After the abrogation of Article 370 (which accorded special status to J&K), the party (BJP) should have swept the elections," he said.

Pawar criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his recent remarks in Maharashtra that the Congress had done nothing for the Banjara community.

"He forgets that Vasantrao Naik, who belonged to the community, was the longest serving chief minister of the state," he said.

Maharashtra Congress president Nana Patole said people of the state will never accept a PM making political speeches at official functions.

Pawar said the administration in Maharashtra was the best in the country.

"Now it is demoralised. The kind of decisions being taken recently are like making a mockery of the common man," he claimed.

"We are making a collective attempt to free people from this government and I hope people will support us," he said.

Thackeray said each move of the state government is looked upon with suspicion -- like the two arrests made in the case of murder of NCP leader Baba Siddique and even the killing of Badlapur sexual assault case accused Akshay Shinde in a police shootout.

Mumbai has "two police commissioners" but still the city has seen a rise in incidents of crime, Thackeray claimed.

To a question on the MVA's chief ministerial face for the state elections which are expected to be held next month, Thackeray said the polls will be a contest between the opposition alliance and the ruling Mahayuti.

"Let the Mahayuti announce its CM face, MVA will follow suit," he said.

Pawar and Patole said Thackeray has made the MVA's position clear.

"Our aim is to defeat the government and not the projection of a CM face," Patole said.