Devendra Fadnavis.
Credit: PTI Photo
Mumbai: Amid emotional and heart-breaking time for NCP and NCP (SP), Maharashtra’s Chief Minister and BJP’s trouble-shooter Devendra Fadnavis has an important task cut out - to ensure that the 40 MLAs elected along with Ajit Pawar does not drift towards the party’s founder Sharad Pawar and his daughter Supriya Sule.
In the ruling Maha Yuti, which won a massive mandate in the 2024 Vidhan Sabha polls, the BJP has 132 MLAs, followed by Eknath Shinde- led Shiv Sena with 57 and Pawar’s NCP 41.
After Pawar’s death, the NCP tally is now 40.
Though the BJP-led NDA is way above the magic figure of 145 in the 288-member Maharashtra Legislative Assembly, keeping NCP together with BJP and trying to bring the NCP (SP) in its fold is a major task for him, politically.
As Pawar held the Finance, Planning and Excise portfolios, Fadanvis has also an important task ahead as the budget session of Maharashtra legislature is a few weeks away.
Veteran political analyst and commentator Prakash Akolkar said that since both NCP and NCP (SP) are contesting the 5 February zilla parishad elections together on the ‘clock’ symbol it could chart out the road ahead for the two parties.
Since Pawar was the NCP legislature party leader, the party would have to call a meeting and elect a new leader, who could possibly take over as the next Deputy Chief Minister.
The new NCP National President also needs to be elected.
As of now NCP Working President is Praful Patel while Sunil Tatkare is the Maharashtra NCP President.
Ajit Pawar’s wife Sunetra Pawar, who is a Rajya Sabha MP, would have a major role to play in the transition and succession process.
In the recently-concluded municipal corporations polls in Maharashtra’s 29 cities, the NCP, which contested separately from Maha Yuti allies, bagged 167 seats. However, the BJP on its home ground of Pune and Pimpri Chinchwad, where it had aligned with Sharad Pawar’s NCP (SP), which won only 36 seats across the state.
In the 165-member Pune Municipal Corporation, the NCP won only 27 seats and NCP (SP) 3 seats against BJP’s tally of 119, whereas in the 102-member Pimpri Chinchwad civic body, Ajit Pawar’s party got 37 and Sharad Pawar’s faction drew a blank, while BJP got 84 seats.
In December 2025, in the polls to 246 municipal councils and 42 nagar panchayats, the NCP won 966 and NCP (SP) 256 out of the total 6,851 seats.
On 5 February, 2026, 12 zilla parishad and 125 panchayat samitis would go to polls in which NCP and NCP (SP) will contest under the clock symbol.