Maha Assembly polls: Pawar meets leaders of NCP cells

Ahead of the Maharashtra Assembly polls later this year, NCP chief Sharad Pawar Saturday held meetings with leaders of different party cells and guided them on their roles, sources said.

The party has around 15 state-level cells, including OBC, minority, information technology, legal among others.

Maharashtra NCP chief Jayant Patil and senior party leader Chhagan Bhujbal attended the meetings, they said.

"We are likely to get 144 of the total 288 seats to contest in Maharashtra under a pre-poll arrangement with the Congress and other allies. The meeting was called to review the current scenario in the seats we are likely to get," a party leader said, requesting anonymity.

"Each of the party's cells has members in these constituencies. The leaders guided the members on roles they will have to play in the election," the leader said.

"Some of the members are also aspiring to contest the upcoming election. They conveyed their views to the party leadership during the meetings held separately cell wise," the leader added.

Meanwhile, during a meeting held with party's 'kamgar (workers) cell', Patil said the NCP stood with labourers to solve their problems.

"The current government did nothing for the betterment of workers during its tenure...Pawar saheb stood behind the workers at such a juncture," Patil told the cell members, according to a party statement.

The NCP had fought the 2014 Assembly polls alone and won 41 seats out of the 278 it contested.