Sena-BJP are like ants stuck on jaggery: Sharad Pawar

Nationalist Congress Party NCP chief Sharad Pawar does not see the BJPrsquos state government falling especially in view of the Shiv Senarsquos posturing He said that power was like a block of jaggery oozing sweetness and the Sena and BJP were like ants drawn to that block sucking as much sweetness as they could from it Pawar was speaking at a press conference held at the NCP headquarters to address the drought issue in MaharashtraPawar came down heavily on Prime Minister Narendra Modi for ignoring the unrest that the country is going through because of the intolerant ways of some factions File picldquoThey will remain in power as long as they continue to extract sweetness Therersquos no possibility of midterm polls either because the BJP and Sena have been showing some patience towards each other even as they are engaged in a war of wordsrdquo Pawar said while chiding the saffron partners who have taken contradictory stands on issues of governance and cultural affairs such as the book release of a former Pakistan ministerThe two have even scrapped a tieup in the KalyanDombivli municipal polls Pawar was more scathing of the Sena ldquoSome leaders spoke highly of selfesteem before joining the BJP government Now I wonder how patient they have become especially when others speak anything against them To me it appears like an arrangement wherein they use strong words against each other but shy from discarding power in retaliationrdquo he saidPawar ridiculed the Sena for asking the BJP to quit the government because it had compromised nationalism mdash in the Senarsquos eyes mdash by allowing Observer Research Foundation head Sudheendra Kulkarni to host an exPakistan minister in Mumbai Some Sainiks had smeared Kulkarnirsquos face with black paint as a mark of protestldquoWho joined the BJP government after sitting in opposition Itrsquos a joke when the Sena says BJP should quit the government I know for sure that Devendra Fadnavis had formed the government last yearrdquo he said showing a mischievous smile that he displays very sparinglyThe veteran leader said the NCP will not join the BJP government if the Sena walks out ldquoWe supported the BJPrsquos minority government for giving the state some stability My party will not join the government because I know for sure this government may not run smoothly but it will be there as the BJPSena coalitionrdquo said PawarSlams Modi Pawar came down heavily on Prime Minister Narendra Modi for ignoring the unrest that the country is going through because of the intolerant ways of some sections of society ldquoAuthors are returning state awards and their action speaks volumes for the current atmosphere in the country And when we expect tolerance some people are taking extreme steps and supporting the troublemakers Since this is panIndia it is expected of the PM to take control and help states in hard times Modi did speak about the Dadri incident but it was too late by thenrdquo said PawarPawar cited exPM late Indira Gandhirsquos intervention in atrocities against Dalits in Maharashtra during the agitation for renaming the Marathwada University after Dr BR Ambedkar ldquoMrs Gandhi asked me Pawar was CM then to travel to Delhi to explain the situation to her She offered me all help I expect the current leader of the country to do the samerdquoHe said it was even more serious when people who advocate values of Indian culture lack sensitivity when they openly issue threats on TV shows ldquoA former CP of Mumbai Satyapal Singh who is now BJP MP says the Dadri incident was minor and there was nothing to worry about I canrsquot believe it when a person who has been Mumbairsquos CP says this kind of things And what BJPrsquos Union cultural affairs minister Mahesh Sharma said was also inappropriaterdquoSena ministers want CM to resolve issuesEven as speculations were rife about the SenaBJP ruling alliance crumbling the Sena ministers and some MLAs put the tension between the partners aside to get some pending work cleared by CM Fadnavis on WednesdayIndustries minister Subhash Desai led a delegation of some ministers and party MLAs to Fadnavis asking him to expedite certain works in their respective Assembly constituencies Desai confirmed the meeting while speaking with media persons He did not elaborate on details