Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA) chief Prakash Ambedkar claims Sharad Pawar has taken a step towards joining the BJP, suggesting a merger between the two NCP factions facilitated by Ajit Pawar. This speculation arises amid reports of a new bonhomie between Gautam Adani and the Pawar family, coinciding with Adani's visit to Baramati and the two NCP factions announcing plans to contest Pune Municipal Corporation elections together. Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut downplayed the Adani-Pawar connection as personal, but attributed the NCP split to Adani.