Devendra Fadnavis said opposition leaders have realised the country's future is bright (File)

Launching a sharp attack on Sharad Pawar, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Saturday said the politics of "breaking and making parties" practiced by Mr Pawar has struck the Nationalist Congress Party.

Referring to the string of defections from the NCP and the Congress to the ruling parties, Mr Fadnavis said the opposition leadership has failed to instill confidence in their leaders.

"Opposition leaders are switching to the BJP because they have realised that the country's future is bright under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi," he said at the "India Today Conclave 2019" event.

Maharashtra will face single-phase elections for all 288 seats on October 21. Counting of votes will be done on October 24.

Top leadership of the BJP, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and party chief Amit Shah, has amplified their attack on Mr Pawar.

In a rally in Nashik on Thursday, PM Modi slammed Mr Pawar over his statement on Pakistan.

Earlier, Mr Fadnavis had targetted Mr Pawar on the same issue and said the statement was made with an eye on a particular vote bank.



"Pawar Sahab used to do this and hence he thinks we also will do so. But there is a big difference between theirs and our brand of politics. We need not play the kind of politics Pawar Sahab played," he said.

He added that Mr Pawar once "made and broke parties".

"It was the charisma of time now that the same thing is happening to his party, the NCP, today," he added.

The NCP, which was formed in 1999 by Mr Pawar after walking out of the Congress, is facing its worst crisis, with many of its leaders joining the BJP and the Shiv Sena.