'Ratan Tata is 86 years old': Sharad Pawar's daughter Supriya Sule responds to Ajit Pawar's age jibe

Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar's daughter Supriya Sule on Wednesday hit back at Maharashtra deputy chief minister and her cousin brother Ajit Pawar for taking a dig at her father.

“Some people are saying that people who are senior now should give us blessings. Why should they stop working? Ratan Tata is 86 years old. Serum Institute's Cyrus Poonawala's age is 84. Amitabh Bachchan is 82...,” Sule said while addressing the party gathering in Mumbai, without naming her brother directly.

"Disrespect us, not our father. This fight is against the BJP government. BJP is the most corrupt party in the country," she said.

Her remarks came after Ajit Pawar asked his uncle Sharad to take retirement from his long political career.

"You are 83, aren't you going to stop? Everybody has his innings. The most productive years are from 25 to 75 years. Give us your blessings and we will pray that you live a long life," Ajit Pawar said while addressing a gathering of his supporters and MLAs and MPs of his faction.

"For us, Saheb (Sharad Pawar) is a deity and we have deep respect for him. IAS officers retire at 60. Even in politics, BJP leaders retire at 75. You can see the example of L K Advani and Murli Manohar Joshi," he added.

Two parallel Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) meetings took place in Mumbai on Wednesday by factions led by Sharad Pawar and Ajit Pawar in a show of strength. While the NCP faction led by Ajit Pawar held a meeting in Mumbai's Bandra, Sharad Pawar faction's meeting took place at Nariman Point.

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar on Wednesday said he aspired to become the CM of the state. "I was sworn in deputy CM five times. It is a record but the vehicle stops there, doesn't proceed further. I feel from the bottom of my heart that I should become pramukh (cm) of the state. I have some things which I want to implement and for that becoming pramukh (CM) is essential," Pawar said, reported news agency PTI.

Reportedly, 31 MLAs attended the meeting called by the Ajit Pawar group while 13 MLAs were present at the conclave addressed by the NCP chief Sharad Pawar. The meeting was convened after Sharad Pawar's nephew Ajit Pawar along with eight other party leaders joined the Shiv Sena-BJP government. Ajit Pawar took oath as deputy CM on July 2.

Meanwhile, in a petition filed before the Election Commission on July 5, the Ajit Pawar-led faction claimed that a resolution was passed at a national executive meeting on June 30, that replaced Sharad Pawar as NCP president and elected Ajit Pawar to the top post.

Also Read: IMD predicts rainfall, thunderstorms, lightning in these regions till July 9; check latest weather forecast