By Apoorva Misra,Mayuresh Ganapatye,News18

Copyright news18

In a departure from the Opposition’s jibes a day earlier, veteran politician and NCP (SP group) chief Sharad Pawar on Wednesday said personal milestones should be kept above political rivalries.
Speaking to reporters in Kolhapur, Pawar revealed that he had extended greetings to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on his 75th birthday and stressed that such occasions should not be weighed down by bitterness. “We are people shaped by the values of Yashwantrao Chavan. Narendra Modi himself had attended my 75th birthday. Politics should not come in the way of such gestures,” Pawar said.
He added with a hint of humour that he himself had never stopped working at 75, so he had no right to ask PM Modi to stop. The remark came in light of RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat’s recent statement about leaders retiring after 75, which was later retracted. Pawar quipped that he too had noticed the “U-turn”.
The NCP (SP) supremo also used the occasion to raise concerns about farmers’ distress across Maharashtra. With heavy rains damaging crops like soyabean and eroding farmland in several districts, Pawar urged the state government to speed up crop surveys and compensation.
“The government must pay attention to panchnamas and ensure timely relief,” he said, recalling how Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj had once symbolically ploughed with a golden plough to highlight the importance of farming after a drought. “Today, too, we must show urgency and stand with farmers in their loss,” Pawar added.
Turning to politics, Pawar clarified that seat-sharing for the upcoming local body elections would depend on local equations. “It is not necessary that the MVA will fight together everywhere. In some places we will contest jointly, in others we may go solo,” he explained. He also remarked that if the Thackeray brothers unite, it would strengthen the Opposition. “In Mumbai and Thane, their strength is well-known. There is nothing wrong if they demand more seats there,” Pawar said.
On social harmony, Pawar expressed worry over growing hostility between Maratha and OBC communities in regions like Parbhani, Beed and Dharashiv. “The situation is such that people avoid even visiting each other’s hotels. This bitterness must not grow,” he warned, questioning why both committees set up by the government on these issues were filled with members of a single community. He recalled how the Mandal Commission decisions were taken collectively in the 1990s with the broader aim of ensuring social justice and said the inclusive vision of Shahu Maharaj should continue to guide the state.
Pawar also touched upon national issues, criticising the Election Commission over recent decisions. He pointed out that for the first time, nearly 300 MPs had marched against the poll body in a sign of serious public anger. “When 300 members of Parliament take to the streets, it cannot be ignored. The commission must rethink its approach,” Pawar said.
Supporting Rahul Gandhi’s recent allegations of electoral irregularities, he said the commission’s credibility was at stake. “The people’s trust in the election process must be strengthened,” he said.