Saamana editorial says a few in Sharad Pawar camp are desperate for ministerial posts

Praful Patel of Sunetra Pawar's party met Sharad Pawar a few days ago. Political activity has picked up since, and the meeting has fuelled talk of a merger of the two Nationalist parties. It is said that a series of meetings on the merger is under way.

It is also being claimed that Supriya Sule and Praful Patel spoke for 35 minutes in the Parliament complex in New Delhi. This has raised the question of whether Sharad Pawar's NCP will join the government. Meanwhile, the Thackeray camp has claimed that two or four people in the Sharad Pawar camp are desperate for ministerial posts.

The editorial in Saamana, the mouthpiece of the Thackeray camp, says: "A play has begun in the two Nationalist parties at this time. A field game is also on. The play does not appear to be coming together as it should. If we call it a game, there is confusion over its rules and form. It now looks like kabaddi, with players pulling each other's legs. At times it seems a game of tag, at times hide-and-seek. But this mix of play and game is giving Marathi people good entertainment. On one side are Sharad Pawar, Supriya Sule, Jayant Patil, Rohit Pawar and Shashikant Shinde. On the other side are players such as Sunetra Pawar, Parth Pawar, Praful Patel and Sunil Tatkare. They have started a new game of merger."

The editorial targets the leaders of both Nationalist parties. It says that while Ajit Pawar was alive, discussions and meetings were going on in the merger game. It claims Ajit Pawar and Jayant Patil held 27 meetings. But before any outcome, Ajit Pawar's death brought the curtain down on this drama.

According to the editorial, Tatkare earlier said that Ajit Pawar and Sharad Pawar never spoke about a merger, but is now reversing himself, saying the merger would have happened had Ajit Pawar been alive and that Ajit Pawar was trying for it. The editorial calls this statement of Tatkare's a cunning one.

The editorial goes on to say: "There may be two or four people in the Sharad Pawar camp who are desperate for ministerial posts. But it is not right to end the principles that Sharad Pawar has upheld through so many years of his life. Who will merge into whom in this game is the next question. That Sharad Pawar keeps talking to a faction that bows at the feet of the BJP, and that an atmosphere of confusion and suspicion is created in Maharashtra, does not befit Maharashtra's tradition. Leaders such as Sharad Pawar, Supriya Sule, Jayant Patil and Shashikant Shinde should not drift along in the game. Wooden logs also keep floating away like this. The merger game is becoming more laughable by the day."