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NCP supremo Sharad Pawar, Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray and Maharashtra Congress President Nana Patole at a press conference, in Mumbai. (PTI file photo)
The polls are also an acid test for Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and his deputy and NCP chief Ajit Pawar as they have cast their lots with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) by splitting their respective parties
As the campaign for the Lok Sabha elections gathers momentum, Sharad Pawar and Uddhav Thackeray, the leaders of two prominent regional parties in Maharashtra, are fighting a battle for political survival.
The polls are also an acid test for Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and his deputy and NCP chief Ajit Pawar as they have cast their lots with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) by splitting their respective parties.
But the challenge is tougher for Thackeray and Sharad Pawar as they are out of power and have lost control of their parties — Shiv Sena and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), respectively — along with the original name and electoral symbol.
The Election Commission and the Maharashtra assembly speaker have recognised the Ajit Pawar-led NCP and Shinde-led Sena as the real NCP and the real Shiv Sena. Senior journalist and political analyst Prakash Akolkar told.