NCP chief Sharad Pawar not contesting Lok Sabha polls is first victory for BJP, says Subhas Deshmukh

Mumbai: The decision of Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar to not contest the ensuing Lok Sabha elections is the first victory for us, said BJP leader Subhash Deshmukh here on Monday. “The first victory for the BJP is already in its bag. Pawar had declared his candidature about one month ago. However, upon reaching out to the people in several assembly constituencies, he got negative feedback and came to know that he is not going to win elections against the BJP. Thus, he decided to quit by making some excuse,” said Deshmukh. [caption id=“attachment_6239811” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File image of Subhash Deshmukh. ANI[/caption] Pawar on Monday announced that he would not contest the ensuing Lok Sabha elections. “I thought that already two members of my family are contesting the election and this was the time one should think about not contesting. Hence, I felt this is the right time to take a decision not to contest since I have already contested 14 times in the past,” he said. However, last month Pawar had said that he would contest the upcoming Lok Sabha polls, while his nephew Ajit Pawar and some other family members will not contest. NCP is contesting the polls in alliance with the Congress in Maharashtra where 48 Lok Sabha seats are at stake. On Sunday, Election Commission of India had announced the schedule for 17th Lok Sabha elections, which will be held in seven phases beginning April 11. The final phase of voting will take place on May 19. The counting of votes will be done on May 23. (ANI)