"Was unwell" Ajit Pawar clears air on his absence since Friday

Mumbai: Ajit Pawar, who allegedly went 'missing' since Friday amid speculations by the media, said that the party program that he was supposed to attend was canceled at the last moment on account of his ill health. He rubbished media reports of him missing along with seven MLAs. He said that he was not well after long tours across the state.

The Maharashtra Leader of Opposition's phone was unreachable since Friday, according to sources. According to party sources, he had also canceled all other programs for the next two days without announcing it officially. There were speculations that the NCP leader was travelling along with a troupe of seven NCP MLAs.

Speaking to ANI about NCP chief Sharad Pawar's television interview he said that the veteran politician's stand is also the party's position on the issue. "I watched Sharad Pawar's interview on TV...He is our top leader and if he took a stand on some topic then we shall not discuss that again. That is his stand, and ours too," he said.

Ajit Pawar's latest leave of absence had a striking similarity to his stint in 2019 when he took oath as the Deputy Chief Minister in the BJP-led government, with Devendra Fadnavis as Chief Minister. However, the Fadnavis-led government that was sworn in by then-Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari in the early morning hours lasted only a day.

On Friday, Sharad Pawar said that the Hindenburg report on Adani seems to be 'targeted' and the Opposition has blown the matter out of proportion. The political stalwart's comments stoked controversy as he is one of the formidable voices among the opposition.

Ajit Pawar earlier made headlines for his statements praising Prime Minister Narendra Modi. When questions were being raised about the Prime Minister's education, Pawar said that education has not made Modi as the Prime Minister, it is his 'charisma' that has made him India's most popular Prime Minister. This comment came just after the Gujarat court fined Arvind Kejriwal who sought Modi's educational certificates from his varsities.