Former Maharashtra Minister Eknath Khadse Quits BJP, to Join NCP on Friday

Mumbai, 21-Oct-2020

Senior Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) leader Eknath Khadse has quit the saffron party and will join the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) on Friday, Maharashtra minister and state NCP chief Jayant Patil said on Wednesday. �He will join NCP at 2 pm on Friday this will strengthen the NCP,� Patil told mediapersons. BJP also confirmed the development and said the party has received Eknath Khadse�s resignation letter. BJP spokesperson Keshav Uphadhye said, �Eknath Khadse was our leader. Till this morning he was in BJP. We were convincing him to stay. We wish him well for the future journey.� Khadse has been sulking since he was made to resign as a minister in the then BJP government in 2016 after allegations of corruption levelled against him. There were speculations in the last few days that he may quit the BJP and join the Sharad Pawar-led party during the Navratri festival. On Sunday, there were talks that Eknath Khadse has resigned from BJP. However, Maharashtra BJP president Chandrakant Patil denied any such development. �Mr Khadse hasn�t resigned from the party. I am sure he will not take any such step,� Patil said. Khadse however kept everyone guessing with his �no comment� reaction. NCP supremo Sharad Pawar fuelled the fire and said, �Khadse�s role in building the BJP cannot be ignored. He has worked as the finance minister and also as an effective Opposition leader. He may feel that he may have been neglected in his party, so there may be thoughts of going to a party where his work will be taken note of.�