NCP’s Sharad Pawar declares Praful Patel, Supriya Sule as new working presidents

Sharad Pawar on Saturday announced Supriya Sule and Praful Patel as working presidents of the Nationalist Congress Party or NCP. Pawar made the announcement at the 25th anniversary of the party, founded by him and PA Sangma in 1999.

The announcement was made in the presence of Ajit Pawar, Sharad Pawar’s nephew and a key player in the NCP.

Pawar had last month offered to resign from the presidency of the party which was followed by fervent remonstrations from the party members as well as other political leaders.

An NCP panel formed to deliberate on Pawar’s offer had on May 5 rejected his resignation and urged him to continue as the party president.

Why Supriya Sule?

Supriya Sule’s ascent in the party in recent years has been viewed as a father grooming his daughter for significant responsibilities. As part of the party’s brass, she is involved in major decisions.

She keeps a hectic travel calendar across multiple districts in short spans and attends all the programmes. She censures the central government and the Eknath Shinde-Devendra Fadnavis-led state government.

When Pawar offered to resign from the presidency of the party last month, Sule was a picture of calm, amid a sea of emotions expressed by party leaders, who requested the NCP supremo to reconsider his decision.