Ties under strain in Pune: NCP accuses BJP of giving it the cold-shoulder

The NCP is part of the government at the state level with party chief Sunetra Pawar as Deputy Chief Minister while Devendra Fadnavis is the Chief Minister of Maharashtra. (Screenshot from video shared by Devendra Fadnavis on Facebook)

3 min readPuneJul 15, 2026 10:04 PM IST

First published on: Jul 15, 2026 at 10:04 PM IST

Ties between the NCP and BJP, which are in alliance at the national and state level, have come under strain in Pune with the NCP accusing the BJP of ignoring it at public events. The NCP also ruled out both parties joining hands at the local level, a day after senior leaders from both NCP factions held a closed-door meeting with Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, just days after NCP (SP) leaders indicated that a section of the party favours joining the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA).

The NCP and BJP are in alliance at the national and state level. The NCP is part of the government at the state level with party chief Sunetra Pawar as Deputy Chief Minister after the demise of her husband Ajit Pawar.

Last week, the BJP had put up hoardings across the city to welcome the palkhi processions but they had only the photos of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Fadnavis, which upset local NCP leaders. “We are upset with the BJP for not putting the picture of our party chief and Pune Guardian Minister Sunetra Pawar on the official advertising board to welcome the devotees of the palkhi processions,” said NCP leader Nilesh Nikam, who is also the leader of opposition in the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC).

The NCP leader said this was not the only incident when the party was ignored by the BJP, which is in power in PMC. “The ruling BJP cites state and national level alliances to seek support for their decisions in the civic body. However, when it comes to sharing credit for any good decision the NCP is ignored,” said another NCP leader.

Former Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Kakade, who recently joined the NCP by leaving the BJP, said he would ensure the NCP gets to share power in the PMC to ensure NCP corporators get funds for development of their electoral wards.

City NCP chief Sunil Tingre, however, said, “The views of the former Rajya Sabha MP are personal. There is no such discussion or decision on becoming part of the ruling alliance in the PMC as of now. It is up to the party leadership to take a decision in this regard when the situation arises.”

Tingre said the NCP contested the election independently and was voted as the main opposition party in the PMC. “Late Ajit Pawar prepared the manifesto of NCP and we are committed to fulfill that despite being in opposition. We will continue to build pressure on the ruling BJP in PMC to work in the interest of citizens,” he said.