“Unaware, final decision lies with Congress’s high command”: Maharashtra LoP on reports of Nana Patole’s resignation

Nagpur (Maharashtra) [India], December 14 (ANI): Maharashtra Assembly Leader of Opposition Vijay Wadettiwar responded to reports about Nana Patole’s potential resignation as the State Congress chief and said that he was unaware of the development.

Vijay Wadettiwar emphasized that the party’s senior leadership is credited for both victories and defeats. He suggested that electoral setbacks might have influenced Patole’s reported decision, adding that the final decision on such matters rests with the Congress’s high command in Delhi.

Speaking to ANI, Wadettiwar said, “I am not aware of this. Senior leadership gets the credit for wins and losses both. Everyone in the Parliament gives him the credit for the loss (in the Maharashtra Assembly election). Maybe that’s why he resigned. The High command in Delhi will decide on this.”

Reportedly, Maharashtra Congress president, Nana Patole, wrote to party leader Mallikarjun Kharge, seeking to be relieved of his position.

Nana Patole managed to retain his Sakoli assembly seat in the Bhandara district, though his victory was secured with a slim margin of just 208 votes.

Earlier last week, the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) leaders held a meeting in Mumbai following the alliance setback in the recent Maharashtra Assembly Election 2024.

In November, Congress general secretary KC Venugopal said the Congress Working Committee (CWC) reviewed the party’s performance in the last assembly elections and decided to form internal committees at the block and district levels to address “electoral performance and organisational issues.”

In the Maharashtra Assembly Election Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led Mahayuti alliance secured a landslide by winning 235 seats. The results marked a significant milestone for the BJP, which emerged as the single-largest party with 132 seats.

The Shiv Sena and Nationalist Congress Party made notable gains, with 57 and 41 seats, respectively.

The Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) suffered a major setback with Congress winning just 16 seats. Its alliance partner, Shiv Sena (UBT), won 20 seats, while the NCP (Sharad Pawar faction) secured only 10 seats.