Pune, Nov 13 (PTI) NCP (SP) president Sharad Pawar on Wednesday said his former party colleague Dilip Walse Patil betrayed him.
Pawar was speaking at a rally in support of NCP (SP) candidate Devdutt Nikam in Ambegaon assembly constituency in the district ahead of the November 20 Maharashtra polls.
The rival NCP has fielded Walse Patil, the seven-term sitting MLA, from the seat.
"He kept saying Saheb (Sharad Pawar) will not talk (anything negative) about me, but what is left for me to say? Dilip Walse Patil betrayed us, and those who betrayed us are needed to be punished. You need to make sure that Devdutt Nikam wins this seat with a huge margin," said Pawar.
Walse Patil joined the Ajit Pawar-led faction after the Nationalist Congress Party split last year, and became a minister in the BJP-Shiv Sena-NCP government.
"I have an unbreakable bond with Ambegaon taluka. Even before I gave an opportunity to Dilip Walse Patil, I have been associated with this taluka," the senior Pawar further said.
He made Walse Patil not just an MLA but also a minister, he said.
"I do not want anything from those whom I have given position, power, authority and prestige. Today many people are upset with him. People did not like his decision as he joined the cabinet. He says he has a very healthy relationship with us, but it is not so," Sharad Pawar added.