2023 Nationalist Congress Party split

The 2023 Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) split occurred on 2 July 2023, when Ajit Pawar and several senior party leaders broke away from the NCP—led by his uncle Sharad Pawar—and joined the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)–Shiv Sena alliance in Maharashtra.^[1] Ajit Pawar took the oath as Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra, and eight other NCP leaders were inducted as ministers.^[2] This led to a formal split within the party, resulting in two factions: one led by Sharad Pawar and the other by Ajit Pawar.

This article is about 2023 Nationalist Congress Party split. For 2022 Shiv Sena split, see 2022 Maharashtra political crisis.

2023 Nationalist Congress Party split

Part of Politics of Maharashtra
Sharad Pawar, Ajit Pawar
Date	2 July 2023 (2023-07-02) – 7 February 2024 (2024-02-07)
Location	Mumbai, Maharashtra
Outcome	Ajit Pawar took the oath as Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra The Nationalist Congress Party split into two factions Nine NCP MLAs took the oath as Cabinet Ministers in the Eknath Shinde‑led Government of Maharashtra The Indian National Congress became the largest opposition party in the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly Numbers by faction: Sharad Pawar camp in the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly 15 / 56 (27%) Ajit Pawar camp in the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly 40 / 56 (71%) Sharad Pawar camp in the Parliament of India 7 / 9 (78%) Ajit Pawar camp in the Parliament of India 2 / 9 (22%)
Preceded by	2022 Shiv Sena split

The split triggered a legal dispute over the party’s name and election symbol. On 6 February 2024, the Election Commission of India recognised the Ajit Pawar‑led faction as the official NCP and allotted it the party’s name and symbol.^[3] The faction led by Sharad Pawar was subsequently referred to as the Sharad Pawar faction.

On 5 March 2024, Maharashtra Legislative Assembly Speaker Rahul Narwekar declared Ajit Pawar’s group the “real” NCP, citing its majority in the legislature.^[4]