Mumbai, July 14 (IANS) Senior Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader and Rajya Sabha MP Praful Patel on Tuesday sought to downplay the legal challenge to the appointment of Sunetra Pawar as the party’s National President, asserting that her election was carried out strictly in accordance with the party constitution.

The controversy erupted after former NCP National Secretary Sachidanand Singh served a legal notice questioning the validity of Sunetra Pawar’s elevation and demanding a fresh election for the party’s top post. The notice has triggered fresh speculation about factional fault lines within the party.

Distancing himself from the move, Patel said he had no connection with the legal notice and dismissed suggestions that it carried significant weight. “I have absolutely no connection with the notice sent to Sunetra Pawar, and there is no reason to give it much weight,” Patel stated, adding that “Her selection was completely in line with the party’s rules.”

However, Patel admitted that internal structural changes are required following the vacuum left by the passing of the party’s former chief. “Ajit Pawar’s demise has left a massive void in the party that urgently needs to be filled. Before this notice arrived, I had informally expressed my view that certain internal reforms are necessary. But my personal opinion on organisational updates has absolutely nothing to do with this legal notice.”

Patel is expected to meet the party’s national president, Sunetra Pawar, in the evening to discuss the way forward, especially after a legal notice has been served.

The legal notice, served on July 9, has sparked intense speculation across Maharashtra’s political circles. The challenge comes just months after Sunetra Pawar — wife of the late Ajit Pawar — was handed the reins of the party. Praful Patel had formally announced her appointment during the NCP’s general body meeting on February 26.

Sachidanand Singh, who is spearheading this internal rebellion, is a veteran organisational figure. He is currently the Jharkhand State President of the NCP and has been associated with the party for over 15 years. He was appointed as National Secretary by Ajit Pawar during the party’s Karjat (Maharashtra) conclave in December 2023. He was dropped from the newly formed executive committee announced on February 26, 2026.

Singh’s legal notice claimed that Sunetra Pawar’s elevation violates the party constitution — a move that has brought the NCP’s bubbling internal friction into the public eye. Party insiders reveal that the senior leadership is highly skeptical about whether Singh acted independently or is being backed by a rival faction within the high command. All eyes are now on Jay Pawar, the chief of the party’s disciplinary committee, to see how the complaints will be handled.

This development is widely viewed as the next chapter in an ongoing power struggle. Speculation has long been rife about a divide pitting veterans Praful Patel and Sunil Tatkare against Sunetra Pawar and Parth Pawar.

Tensions surfaced earlier this year regarding correspondence with the Election Commission (EC). In March, Sunetra Pawar abruptly cancelled an official letter that Praful Patel had sent to the EC in February. In the subsequent communication released on April 29, Patel was designated as the leader of the Rajya Sabha wing, while Sunil Tatkare was designated as the leader of the Lok Sabha wing.

Four months later, the party has neither cleared the ambiguity surrounding official designations nor clarified if a revised letter was ever sent to the EC. Suspecting a deeper conspiracy, camps close to the National President are currently investigating if any top-tier leaders orchestrated the legal challenge to undermine her authority.

–IANS

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