Overlooked for a berth in the new Mahayuti ministry, NCP heavyweight Chhagan Bhujbal on Tuesday openly criticised party chief and Maharashtra Deputy CM Ajit Pawar and other leaders, including Praful Patel, for "sidelining" senior members and taking decisions without consultation. Speaking to reporters in Nashik, his home district in north Maharashtra, Bhujbal said he met his supporters to explain his omission from the Devendra Fadnavis-led cabinet which was expanded on December 15 in Nagpur with the induction of 39 members. The 77-year-old MLA from Yeola in Nashik district, who was a cabinet member in the previous Mahayuti government, did not find a place in the new ministry. "People are still confused. I got elected by my people and I need to tell them the reasons behind my omission from the cabinet. I explained everything to them. They told me they will stand firmly behind me and requested me not to leave the assembly. I assured them that I will not abandon them," Bhujbal said. .