Pawar wants sacrifacial goat in Maha CM: Will Sonia oblige

Sharad Pawar is actually left with little choice. The provocation is from
Maharashtra as the chief minister Prithviraj Chavan, a so called high command's
choice and paratrooped from Delhi, has been trying to needle NCP and more so
Ajit Pawar, NCP supremo's nephew.

The 'demotion' of the Maratha strongman and NCP supremo in the union cabinet ranking is just a good excuse that NCP has used. Both NCP cabinet members from the party Mr Sharad Pawar and Mr Praful Patel sent in their resignations to the Prime Minister on July 19 night.

"Letters of resignations have been sent to the Prime Minister," top
party sources even as the Agriculture Minister declined to comment
on the episode.
Mr Pawar also declined to react to reports that the Prime Minister Dr
Manmohan Singh had tried to reach out to him to mollify him over the issue.

Now, by the weekend, bracing for the crucial meeting of the party's
core group on Monday, July 23, which would try to redefine the party's relations with UPA, the NCP hinted that the "settlement at this
juncture looks remote".

Besides the issue of lack of coordination, there is a feeling that the
NCP's ministers are being targeted in Maharashtra at the instance of the chief minister. A section of NCP leaders privately do not rule out working out some new combination in Maharashtra though party spokesman Prof D P Tripathi said that such
a step would be "suicidal".

Sources say that NCP leadership has come under "personal pressure"
from Mr Pawar's nephew Mr Ajit Pawar as he is much antagonized
with the Maharashtra Chief Minister Mr Prithviraj Chavan's order for a
'white paper' on irrigation. Mr Ajit Pawar was Irrigation Minister
from 2000 to 2009 and the portfolio is now held by the NCP's Mr Sunil
Tatkare. The allegation is that despite over Rs 70,000 crores being
spent on dams, only 0.1% of land was added to the area under irrigation during last 8-9 years. Another NCP bigwig, PWD minister Chhagan Bhujbal is also facing
allegations of corruption in construction of Maharashtra Sadan in
Delhi. The NCP supremo is keen to buy peace with his nephew as he is considered a real inheritor of Pawar legacy though Sharad Pawar would like to ensure smoooth
position for his daughter Supriya too.
Moral of the story: Prithviraj Chavan can be made sacrifacial goat?
Sonia has to oblige...