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Sharad Pawar said two people offered to guarantee 160 of 288 seats in Maharashtra elections, but he and Rahul Gandhi dismissed it.
NCP (SCP) chief Sharad Pawar. (ANI)
Nationalist Congress Party (SCP) president Sharad Pawar on Saturday claimed that two people had approached him ahead of the Maharashtra Assembly elections, claiming they could guarantee 160 out of 288 seats.
While addressing a press conference in Nagpur, Pawar said that he had arranged a meeting with those people and Rahul Gandhi, but the two leaders ultimately dismissed the offer, stating, “This is not our way”.
“I remember that before the Maharashtra Assembly elections were announced, two people came to meet me in Delhi… They told me that out of 288 seats in Maharashtra, we guarantee you 160 seats. I was surprised, to be honest, I had no doubts about the Election Commission…” he said as quoted by news agency ANI.
“After that, I arranged a meeting with those people and Rahul Gandhi. Whatever they wanted to say, they said in front of Rahul Gandhi. But Rahul Gandhi and I were of the opinion that we should not pay attention to this; this is not our path,” he added.
Nagpur, Maharashtra | NCP-SCP chief Sharad Pawar says, “I remember that before the Maharashtra Assembly elections were announced, two people came to meet me in Delhi… They told me that out of 288 seats in Maharashtra, we guarantee you 160 seats. I was surprised, to be honest, I… pic.twitter.com/0GdXL9bDOR— ANI (@ANI) August 9, 2025
The NCP veteran further said that Rahul Gandhi’s recent presentation on alleged polling irregularities was well-researched and well-documented, and it is up to the Election Commission of India (ECI) to look into the matter.
He also criticised the poll body for seeking a separate affidavit from Lok Sabha Leader of the Opposition.
He also admitted that the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance should have been more careful before the elections in Maharashtra.
“We should have looked into it earlier and been careful,” he said.
“The Election Commission is an independent body. Rahul Gandhi said he has already taken an oath in Parliament, so there is no need for a separate affidavit. If the Election Commission still insists on such a thing, that is not right. Rahul Gandhi’s allegations need to be probed in depth,” he said as quoted by news agency PTI.
Rahul Gandhi has described the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls as an “institutionalised theft” and claimed that the Election Commission was “openly colluding” with the BJP to carry out this “theft” with the objective of taking away the voting rights of the poor.
CM Fadnavis Questions Timing
Reacting to Pawar’s statement, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis asked why the former spoke up only now about two men meeting him and offering to ensure the Opposition’s victory in the last year’s state elections.
“Why is Pawar disclosing this after Rahul Gandhi’s claims? Earlier Pawar never endorsed Gandhi’s claims about (manipulation of) EVMs. No matter what, free and fair polls are held in India… Gandhi tells stories that sound like a Salim-Javed script, and what Pawar has said seems to be the same script,” Fadnavis told reporters as quoted by the news agency.
The Chief Minister defended the electoral process, calling India’s elections “free and fair” and accusing the opposition of avoiding formal complaints to the ECI despite making public allegations.
(With inputs from agencies)
Shobhit Gupta is a sub-editor at News18.com and covers India and International news. He is interested in day to day political affairs in India and geopolitics. He earned his BA Journalism (Hons) degree from Ben…Read More
Shobhit Gupta is a sub-editor at News18.com and covers India and International news. He is interested in day to day political affairs in India and geopolitics. He earned his BA Journalism (Hons) degree from Ben… Read More
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