Maharashtra BJP president Chandrashekhar Bawankule on Thursday took potshots at NCP chief Sharad Pawar over the events surrounding the short-lived government in 2019, saying it was Pawar's last "googly" and none of his plans will work now.
Bawankule, speaking to a TV channel here, said Sharad Pawar made his nephew and NCP leader Ajit Pawar a "scapegoat" when the latter joined hands with BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis to form a government that collapsed after 80 hours.
On November 23, 2019, Fadnavis took oath as Chief Minister and Ajit Pawar as deputy CM at an early morning swearing-in ceremony, but their government did not last long.
In an interview, Fadnavis, now deputy CM of Maharashtra, claimed Sharad Pawar had agreed to form a government with the BJP, but backed out at the last moment. Responding to Fadnavis statement, the former Union minister said in Pune he knew "where and when to bowl a googly".
His father-in-law (Test player Sadu Shinde) was a googly bowler, and he himself (Pawar) was the ICC chairman, the NCP chief said, adding, "so, without playing cricket, I knew where and when to bowl a googly." Bawankule said history of Pawar shows he goes anywhere for sake of power.
"Pawar had tried a lot to join hands with the BJP in 2014 for sake of power and hatched a political conspiracy in 2019. He made his nephew Ajit Pawar a part of that conspiracy and tried to destroy his political career. By doing so he raised a question mark over Ajit Pawar in the minds of people and the NCP," said Bawankule.
The BJP leader, reacting to Sharad Pawar's googly barb, said it was his last "googly". "Henceforth, none of Pawar's googly will work and only the Devendra Fadnavis government will work in Maharashtra," he said.
