Sharad Pawar makes it official: He will not be part of next government

Union minister and senior NCP leader Praful Patel told The Indian Express that Pawar had made it clear that he would prefer to enter Parliament through the Rajya Sabha.

“Pawar will not contest the next Lok Sabha elections and he will not join the next government. But the NCP will continue to be a part of the Congress,” Patel said.

In the CNN-IBN interview,Pawar also said that he would have preferred Rahu being a part of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s government.

“I would have only been happy if he had joined Manmohan Singh government. I would have preferred he should have joined government. Definitely that would be beneficial for him,” Pawar said,adding that “one has to prove his mettle in administration”.

The veteran parliamentarian,however,clarified that he was not aware of Rahul’s abilities as he had not worked with him.

“I do not know,I have no knowledge. I haven’t seen,” Pawar replied when asked if he felt Rahul lacks the mettle to be an administrator. “I have met (him) only once or twice.”