It has to be decided by the party: Sharad Pawar when asked about nephew's removal from NCP

NCP supremo Sharad Pawar on Monday said that the decision to expel a leader from the party is taken collectively by the party when such a matter comes before it.

Pawar said this when he was asked at a press conference in Karad, if his nephew Ajit Pawar will be expelled from the party. Pawar said, "This is not something for which a single individual takes a decision, it has to be decided by the party when the matter comes before it."

Speaking about Ajit supporting the BJP to form the government in the state, Pawar said, "This kind of decision should not be taken individually. Our party's stance was to move forward in alliance with the other two parties."

"An individual may have his own preference but that person has to tell about his choice in the party meeting and then a decision is taken," he said.

After a prolonged uncertainty over the government formation that lasted for nearly a month, BJP's Devendra Fadnavis on Saturday early morning took oath for the second consecutive term as the state chief minister, while Ajit Pawar was sworn-in as his deputy chief minister.

Soon after the swearing-in, Sharad Pawar had said that Ajit's decision to support the BJP was a "personal decision" and not supported by the NCP.

Ajit was later sacked as the NCP's legislator party leader, stripping his rights to issue a whip to the party MLAs.