New Delhi, February 09: : Agriculture Minister and NCP chief Sharad Pawar on Monday faced fresh criticism from ally Congress on the price rise issue, a day after his meeting with Shiv Sena supremo Bal Thackeray on security for Australian cricketers in IPL cricket competition in Mumbai.
While Congress steered clear on the issue of his meeting with Thackeray saying “cricket is a wholly different world” it attacked Pawar over rising prices of essential commodities.
The NCP chief’s meeting with Thackeray in Mumbai last night, purportedly to discuss the issue of security of Australian cricketers, stirred the hornet’s nest with several political parties taking exception to the talks and Congress also expressing its displeasure.
Congress spokesman Manish Tewari did not comment specifically on Pawar-Thackeray meeting, by saying cricket is a “wholly different world altogether.”
He made it clear that it was the responsibility of the state government to ensure that the writ of the state runs and expressed confidence that the Ashok Chavan-led government will “fully and squarely” meet the situation.
However, Congress leaders privately said Pawar’s actions in a way had expressed no confidence in the state Home Minister R R Patil who belongs to NCP.
—-PTI