NCP split to possible reunion: The history of Sharad Pawar's party and why merger talks are back

Parth Pawar's consecutive visits to his granduncle and Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar) chief Sharad Pawar's Mumbai residence have renewed speculation about a possible reunion of the two Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) factions. The developments come amid indications that senior leaders of the Ajit Pawar-led faction are keen to revive merger discussions that had reportedly gathered momentum before his death in January this year. Parth is the son of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Sunetra Pawar and the late Ajit Pawar. The visits came days after senior NCP leader Praful Patel met Sharad Pawar at Breach Candy Hospital in Mumbai on November 5 and indicated that he would meet the veteran leader again after November 10.

A video of Patel's interaction with Sharad Pawar at the hospital surfaced on social media, fuelling speculation about a possible resumption of merger discussions. Patel, however, maintained that he had visited Pawar to enquire about his health and said it would not have been appropriate to hold detailed political discussions at a hospital. He subsequently clarified that he intended to meet the NCP (SP) chief at his residence after returning to Mumbai. The NCP has denied that Parth's visits were linked to merger negotiations. Party spokesperson Umesh Patil said there had been no discussion about a merger and described the visits as personal, coming amid a family gathering during Diwali.

The renewed speculation has brought the future of a party founded by Pawar in 1999 back into focus. The NCP was founded on June 10, 1999, after Sharad Pawar, P A Sangma and Tariq Anwar broke away from the Congress over their opposition to Sonia Gandhi's foreign origin and her eligibility to lead the party. Pawar, who had served as Maharashtra Chief Minister and held several Union ministerial portfolios, went on to build the NCP as a significant political force in Maharashtra. Despite the split from the Congress, the two parties joined hands after the 1999 Maharashtra Assembly elections to form a coalition government.

The NCP remained an important partner in the state government and also shared power with the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) at the Centre. In the 2004 Maharashtra Assembly elections, the NCP emerged as the single-largest party with 71 seats but eventually agreed to let the Congress retain the Chief Minister's post in exchange for a larger share of ministerial positions. First signs of split The first major rupture came in November 2019, when Ajit Pawar, Sharad Pawar's nephew, joined hands with the BJP in a surprise early-morning swearing-in ceremony and took oath as Deputy Chief Minister.

However, the move failed to secure sufficient support within the NCP. Ajit Pawar resigned three days later, paving the way for Sharad Pawar to bring together the Congress, NCP and Shiv Sena to form the Maha Vikas Aghadi government under Uddhav Thackeray. The more decisive split came on July 2, 2023, when Ajit Pawar broke away with around 40 MLAs and joined the Eknath Shinde-led Maharashtra government, which was backed by the BJP. The rebellion divided the party into two factions, with Sharad Pawar retaining the leadership of the NCP (SP), while Ajit Pawar headed the rival NCP faction. In February 2024, the Election Commission recognised the Ajit Pawar-led faction as the real NCP and allotted it the party name and symbol.

The Sharad Pawar faction was subsequently allotted the name Nationalist Congress Party-Sharadchandra Pawar. Why merger talks back in focus? The two factions had begun exploring reunification before Ajit Pawar's death in a plane crash on January 28, 2026. Maharashtra NCP president Sunil Tatkare said on November 6 that discussions about a merger had taken place when Ajit Pawar was alive. He claimed that the merger would have been formalised on February 12 had the former Deputy Chief Minister not died. Tatkare's remarks marked a significant shift from the position taken by some NCP leaders after Ajit Pawar's death, when reports of merger discussions had been denied.

However, his death changed the political equation. His wife, Sunetra Pawar, subsequently took over the party leadership and became Deputy Chief Minister. The latest developments have also unfolded amid reported differences between senior NCP leaders and Parth Pawar over the functioning of the party. On November 1, a group of senior NCP leaders, including Praful Patel, Sunil Tatkare, Chhagan Bhujbal, Hasan Mushrif and other party functionaries, met Union Home Minister Amit Shah in Delhi. The meeting, which took place without Sunetra Pawar and her sons Parth and Jay, fuelled speculation about discontent within the party leadership and its future political direction.

Reports have suggested that a section of senior leaders is unhappy with Parth's growing influence in organisational decisions and is exploring the possibility of reviving ties with the Sharad Pawar-led faction. The reported differences have added another dimension to the merger discussions. There are, however, significant hurdles to reunification. The two factions would have to settle questions of leadership, the party's political alliance and its organisational structure. One of the biggest questions is which alliance a reunited NCP would join. The Ajit Pawar-led faction is part of the BJP-led Mahayuti government in Maharashtra, while the Sharad Pawar faction is aligned with the Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi.

Leadership is another contentious issue, particularly following Ajit Pawar's death and the reported differences between Sunetra Pawar, Parth Pawar and senior party functionaries. Sharad Pawar, meanwhile, had indicated in September that his party would focus on strengthening its organisation independently rather than merging with another political formation. For now, neither faction has formally announced a merger decision. While Parth Pawar's visits, Praful Patel's proposed meeting and Tatkare's remarks have brought reunification back into the political conversation, questions over leadership, organisational control and political alignment remain unresolved.