Pune's Congress leaders mull party switch

With Congress MP Suresh Kalmadi losing his political grip on Pune, a section of party corporators are thinking of joining the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), led by deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar in Pune city and district.

Although the entire Western Maharashtra is dominated by the NCP, it was Kalmadi who had kept the Congress flag flying high in Pune. However, over the last decade Pawar has been trying to take over Pune city.

Arch rivals, Kalmadi and Pawar have publicly criticised each other on many occasions and Pawar even entered into an alliance with the BJP and the Shiv Sena under the ‘Pune Pattern’ to keep the Congress out of the Pune Municipal
Corporation (PMC).

NCP sources said that with the civic elections just a year away, it is clear that Kalmadi would not be able to devote quality time to the city unit of the Congress in the next couple of months.

Meanwhile, Pawar has emerged stronger as the state’s deputy chief minister and some Congressmen are looking up to him as their godfather.

Sources from both the parties said that taking advantage of Kalmadi’s crisis, Pawar is trying to attract more and more Congress workers before the PMC polls are announced.

On condition of anonymity, a senior NCP leader said the party will try to attract Congress leaders and activists from wards where it has a weak base.