Sonia Gandhi, Sharad Pawar share a dais after 15 years

Bhandara: After a gap of nearly 15 years, Congress President Sonia Gandhi and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar on Saturday shared the dais when they jointly campaigned for the UPA candidates in Bhandara, Maharashtra.

The uncertainties of the 2014 Lok Sabha elections has apparently brought Mr Pawar - who had broken away from the Congress in 1998 after protesting Gandhi's Italian origins - closer to her.

A year later, Mr Pawar had floated the NCP in 1999, which later became part of the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance at the Centre and in Maharashtra, where the alliance has been in power since 14 years.

Mrs Gandhi's first rally in Maharashtra for the 2014 election saw Mr Pawar joining her to jointly campaign for NCP candidate and Union minister Praful Patel in this Maoist-hit region.

Speaking at a huge rally comprising mostly farmers and tribals, Mrs Gandhi listed the achievements of the Congress-led UPA government, which has been ruling at the Centre for the last ten years.

"The Congress has always supported the farming community and has always been behind them at all times. We have extended help to farmers hit by recent natural disasters," she said.

Referring to the rise of Left-wing extremism, she said that efforts were underway to end the rebels' violence by implementing various developmental schemes for them.

"We brought the Food Security Bill... this is unique anywhere in the world. Now we plan to introduce a similar Health Security Bill for the people of this country. However, the opposition does not see the development which we have achieved," she said.

In his address, Mr Pawar targeted Narendra Modi, the BJP's prime ministerial candidate, calling him "a man in a great hurry" to occupy the top post. (Read)

"He is in great hurry to become the bridegroom," he quipped, saying that only the Congress-NCP coalition can ensure the development of the country.