IPL is Pawar's 'political waterloo': Thackeray

Mumbai: Dabbling in cricket has led to NCP chief Sharad Pawar's "political waterloo," Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray said on Tuesday.

"Pawar ventured onto cricket pitch without any reason and it is on the same pitch that we see him facing his political waterloo," Thackeray said in an editorial in party mouthpiece Saamana.

The seed of IPL sown in cricket was "poison and it is this poisonous python that has encircled Pawar," the editorial said.

Accusing Pawar of indulging in money politics, Thackeray said, "No one knows Pawar better than we do. Power through money, money through power and again, power through money, has been his formula."

"Pawar cannot escape (from the IPL bid row) as Congress has cornered him totally and the person behind it is Sonia Gandhi," Thackeray claimed.

"We told him repeatedly to ignore cricket and concentrate on agriculture. Today, it is this cricket and IPL which has become reason for bringing him into trouble politically," he said.

Pawar has denied reports that he and his family members had made a bid for an IPL team.

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