India, Feb. 15 -- Appointing Chhagan Bhujbal to the core group of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) was clearly a move to placate the senior leader, but it's the appointment of Dhananjay Munde that has set tongues wagging.

Bhujbal and Munde are among the seven members appointed by party chief Ajit Pawar to the NCP's core group on Friday. To be headed by Pawar, the group also comprises national executive president Praful Patel, state unit chief Sunil Tatkare, medical education minister Hasan Mushrif, and Dilip Walse Patil, who was not accommodated in the state cabinet owing to health issues.

The NCP has expanded its core group, which takes all the major decisions relating to the party at the state and national levels. Earlier, it had ...