A day after accusing Sharad Pawar of advising Opposition leaders to skip the CM-organised all-party meeting to discuss the Maratha-OBC quota issue, senior minister Chhagan Bhujbal had an audience with the NCP (SP) president on Monday.

Bhujbal said he had urged Pawar to take the lead in resolving the quota issue that attempted to breach the state’s social fabric. The unscheduled meeting raised many an eyebrow because Bhujbal had left Sharad Pawar for Ajit Pawar a year ago, and his harsh criticism of the leader, who was responsible for his rise after quitting the undivided Shiv Sena in 1991.