Two nephews and their divergent views about uncle: Yugendra terms Ajit Pawar’s call to woman officer ‘wrong’, Rohit slams ‘media trial’
The episode dates back to August 31, when Ajit Pawar made a call to an IPS officer after a demolition drive against unauthorised excavation of murum in Kurdu village of Solapur district sparked tensions
The controversy over deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar’s phone call to a woman IPS officer in Kurdu village drew contrasting responses from his two nephews on Tuesday. While Yugendra Pawar said uncle Ajit Pawar’s remarks were inappropriate, Karjat-Jamkhed MLA from the NCP (SP) Rohit Pawar defended him and called for an end to the “media trial.”
NCP (SP) leader Yugendra Pawar, who contested against his uncle in the Baramati assembly seat last year, criticised the Deputy CM’s conduct. “No one would like such a conversation. I, too, did not like it. One should be careful while speaking with officers. What happened was wrong,” Yugendra said while speaking in Baramati.
The episode dates back to August 31, when Ajit Pawar made a call to an IPS officer after a demolition drive against unauthorised excavation of murum in Kurdu village of Solapur district sparked tensions. According to the tehsildar’s report submitted to the district collector, Murum was being excavated in Kurdu village of Karmala tehsil in Solapur district without securing the mandatory permission from local revenue authorities.
Pawar questioned the officer’s handling of the situation. The tone of the conversation, parts of which were circulated on social media, drew criticism from opposition leaders and activists, prompting Pawar to publicly express regret two days later.
In contrast, Ajit Pawar’s other nephew, Rohit Pawar, MLA from Karjat-Jamkhed, defended him and urged that the “media trial” be stopped. “The stance taken by the female IPS officer in the Kurduwadi case was indeed appropriate, but the confusion that arose there was due to Ajitdada’s Hindi and his style of speaking, which the entire Maharashtra knows about. Ajitdada himself expressed regret over this. However, despite this, some honest but selectively biased social activists are being pushed forward to conduct a media trial deliberately,” Rohit said in a social media post on Wednesday.
{{/usCountry}}In contrast, Ajit Pawar’s other nephew, Rohit Pawar, MLA from Karjat-Jamkhed, defended him and urged that the “media trial” be stopped. “The stance taken by the female IPS officer in the Kurduwadi case was indeed appropriate, but the confusion that arose there was due to Ajitdada’s Hindi and his style of speaking, which the entire Maharashtra knows about. Ajitdada himself expressed regret over this. However, despite this, some honest but selectively biased social activists are being pushed forward to conduct a media trial deliberately,” Rohit said in a social media post on Wednesday.
{{/usCountry}}Rohit, who has been critical of Ajit Pawar since the latter split the NCP and joined the ruling alliance in July 2023, further said: “Instead of unnecessarily subjecting the leaders of allied parties to media trials, it would be more appropriate if the media trials be conducted on farmers’ issues, youth issues, women’s safety concerns, and corruption cases with provided evidence, which can prompt government to act accordingly.”
The two-minute video reportedly captures Pawar speaking to Sub-Divisional Police Officer Anjana Krishna over the phone of a Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) worker on August 31.
Following the video’s circulation, the Solapur district collectorate asked for a detailed report from the Karmala tehsildar office. The report has been submitted to the district administration on Monday.
According to an official, “The report from the tehsildar clearly states that the locals involved had not obtained the required permissions and that the murum excavation was being conducted illegally.”
The official clarified that while royalty on murum extraction is waived for public works like road construction, prior permission from the tehsildar is mandatory. “Even in the case of public projects, the contractor must submit a request specifying the required quantity. Only then is royalty exempted. Here, no such permission was sought,” the official said.
