Lok Sabha elections 2024: I consider PM Modi’s barbs an honour, says Sharad Pawar

Sharad Pawar

Days after Prime Minister Narendra Modi called him a ‘wandering soul', NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar on Wednesday said he treats critical comments from the PM as an ‘honour'.

Modi cannot sit at rest until he says something about him or his ally Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray, Pawar said at a campaign rally here for Nilesh Lanke, the NCP (SP) candidate for Ahmednagar Lok Sabha constituency. "Modi is not at peace unless he targets me or Uddhav Thackeray. As far as I am concerned, I consider it an honour. Modi does not have any issues to speak about," the veteran leader said.

"I want to tell him that this soul is wandering in the state not for 50 years but 56 years. This year I completed 56 years of being elected to the assembly for the first time. This soul is wandering around Maharashtra to rescue the common people of the state from those who are worried about this soul," he said.

Earlier, speaking at a rally in the state, Modi had said, "There is a ‘bhatakti atma' (wandering soul) in Maharashtra. If it does not manage success, it spoils others' good work." Pawar, meanwhile, also claimed that the Lok Sabha elections were being held in five phases in Maharashtra because the PM was not sure of winning, and the election schedule was designed in this way so that he could visit the state frequently for campaigning.

The NCP (SP) chief also lamented that elections to several municipal corporations and other local bodies in the state have not been held for more than two years.

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