EC ruling on NCP: Murder of democracy, says Sharad Pawar group

Mumbai, Feb 6 (PTI) The Election Commission’s decision to announce the Ajit Pawar faction as the real Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), was taken under pressure, a leader of the Sharad Pawar-led group said on Tuesday.

“This is the murder of democracy. What happened is unfortunate,” former Maharashtra minister Anil Deshmukh said.

The poll panel gave this ruling under “pressure from above,” Deshmukh told a TV channel. He did not elaborate.

The EC ruling proves that majority of party workers and elected representatives are with Ajit Pawar, former Union minister and NCP leader Praful Patel said.

The Election Commission’s ruling on Tuesday ended months of speculation over the factional fight between Ajit Pawar and party founder and his uncle Sharad Pawar.

The Commission also allotted the NCP symbol 'wall clock' to the group led by Ajit Pawar.

The decision followed the laid-out tests of maintainability of such a petition which included tests of aims and objectives of party constitution, test of party constitution and tests of majority both organisational and legislative, the commission said.

“The test of majority in the legislative wing found favour in this circumstance of the case, where both groups have found to be working outside the party constitution and the organisational elections," the poll authority observed. PTI ND PR VT VT