PUNE: NCP and NCP (SP) have switched focus on restructuring parties, as the merger talks have shown no progress.Sunetra Pawar-led NCP have made some appointments to vacant posts. Sharad Pawar’s NCP (SP) announced that new faces would be given an opportunity in a rejig in the middle of August.NCP on Wednesday appointed Vaishali Nagawade as the chief of the party’s state women’s wing. Earlier, Rupali Chakankar headed it. After her name cropped up in Nashik-based astrologer Ashok Kharat case, she resigned. The post was vacant since then.A former member of Pune Zilla Parishad, Nagawade was Pune district chief of the women’s wing of NCP before the split in the party. According to sources in NCP, her name was finalised for the post a couple of months ago, but the appointment was kept on hold because of the merger speculations.Recently, speculations of merger grew with a series of meetings between the party seniors from both sides. After Sharad Pawar ruled out the merger possibility, no meeting between the two factions have taken place.Both sides decided to rejig the organisational structure amid the stalemate. Apart from Nagawade, NCP appointed Nikhil Thakare as the chief of the party’s state youth wing.On the other hand, NCP (SP) cancelled appointments of all its party spokespersons. NCP (SP) state president Shashikant Shinde said, “The party will go for a restructuring where some younger members will be given the responsibility of party spokespersons. Supriya Sule will be chairing a three-day session of the party functionaries. New appointments will be announced there.”
