BJP says Ajit Pawar will be cleared in irrigation scam case

The BJP’s Maharashtra media in-charge Navnath Ban said Ajit Pawar would be cleared in the alleged irrigation scam case, stressing that the matter is before the court. He criticised Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut for raising the issue soon after Pawar’s death

Mumbai: The BJP’s Maharashtra unit media in-charge Navnath Ban on Friday said there was no doubt that Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar would be cleared of the allegations levelled against him in the alleged irrigation scam case.

Speaking to reporters here, Ban was responding to remarks by Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut, who had said that the true tribute to Pawar, who died in a plane crash on Wednesday, would be for the BJP to withdraw the allegations.

---

Ban said the matter was in court, and it was inappropriate to raise political questions at a time when the entire state was mourning Pawar’s untimely death.

“The case relating to the irrigation scam allegations is already in court. There is no doubt that Ajit Pawar will get justice and will be cleared of the charges against him,” Ban said.

He also questioned the timing of Raut’s remarks, asking why the issue was raised barely a day after Pawar’s death.

The BJP had earlier accused Pawar of a scam in the irrigation department, asserting that it would never ally with the NCP.

Political realignments followed the 2019 Assembly polls, and in June 2023, when Ajit Pawar broke away from the NCP, founded by his uncle Sharad Pawar, and joined the BJP-led government, becoming deputy chief minister. He later secured control over the NCP name and symbol, while Sharad Pawar’s faction came to be known as NCP (SP).