Don't want to become President of India, says Sharad Pawar; NCP chief wishes to 'serve people' instead

Pune: Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar on Saturday said that he did not want to be the President of India as one “gets retired” after becoming president. Pawar added that he wanted to live among common people and serve them. He was speaking at a function felicitating former president Pratibha Patil for completing 50 years of public life. Former Maharashtra chief minister Sushilkumar Shinde, speaking before Pawar, had said that Pawar is the future President of India. [caption id=“attachment_3159284” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  File image of NCP chief Sharad Pawar. Reuters[/caption] “Once a person becomes governor or president, he gets retired. I do not want to go in that direction. I want to live among people and serve them,” Pawar said. Lauding former president Patil’s contribution, Pawar said that she got all the important positions in politics like state party president, state minister, cabinet minister, governor and President of India. “Only thing she could not become was chief minister (of Maharashtra) and it was me who ruined her chance and became chief minister,” quipped Pawar. Patil in her speech said the Constitution of India and blessings of the people allowed her to become the country’s first woman President. She expressed gratitude to the late Yashwantrao Chavan, Maharashtra’s first chief minister, for giving her an opportunity in politics. Former chief minister Prithviraj Chavan, former union minister Shivraj Patil, former governor DY Patil and Pune district guardian minister Girish Bapat were also present at the function.