Hindustantimes wants to start sending you push notifications. Click allow to subscribe

Lok Sabha Elections 2019: In Maharashtra, crossover episodes play out as parties scramble for candidates

Hindustan Times, Mumbai | By, Mumbai
Mar 26, 2019 03:44 PM IST

All four parties in Maharashtra have still to announce candidates on some ‘difficult’ seats for the Lok Sabha elections.

While candidates for a majority of the 48 Lok Sabha constituencies in Maharashtra have been announced by the main alliances in the state, parties have still not zeroed in on candidates for a few difficult seats. The scramble for candidates has led to allies borrowing each other’s candidates as well as roping in celebrities as candidates.

All four parties have kept some seats without candidates. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has not finalised candidates in Mumbai North East and Madha; the Shiv Sena has not yet announced its Palghar candidate. The Congress has not yet confirmed candidates for Mumbai North, Sangli and Pune seats; the NCP has not finalised its Raver candidate.

Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now.

The Congress is scrambling for a candidate in Mumbai North and is yet to make announcements for Pune and Sangli seats. The Sena is yet to announce candidature for the Palghar seat, which it demanded as part of the alliance deal with the BJP.

And the BJP is yet to announce candidature for Mumbai North East that is represented by sitting MP Kirit Somaiya and for Madha seat in Western Maharashtra.

The city may get glamour quotient in these polls, with reports that Congress is likely to rope in actor Urmila Matondkar as its candidate in Mumbai North, considered to be a strong BJP seat where it has so far not found any candidate.

The party on Monday announced candidature to Sanjay Nirupam from North West constituency, only after the party took away the city chief post away from him. A month before Mumbai goes to polls, Congress has changed the city party chief and appointed former MP Milind Deora in place of Nirupam.

In Sangli, Congress is facing another revolt after it promised this seat to ally Swabhimani Paksha led by farmers’ leader Raju Shetti. Former MP and minister Pratik Patil, grandson of former chief minister Vasantdada Patil has resigned from the party. His brother Vishal Patil has threatened to file his candidature as an independent from this seat.

“There will be some discontent during candidate selection. The seat was given because we have built an alliance with smaller parties. We are trying to sort this out. I am talking to them (Patils),’’ said state Congress chief Ashok Chavan.

The Sena after fighting a bitter contest in Palghar by-polls with BJP is now looking at borrowing BJP’s candidate and former Congress legislator Rajendra Gavit as its candidate for Lok Sabha. In Satara the party has similarly got BJP leader Narendra Patil, ex-NCP, as its candidate.

The BJP, which has made Madha a prestige battle, on Monday poached on yet another leader, this time from the Congress for this seat. Ranjitsinh Naik Nimbalkar, Congress district president from Satara, joined the BJP on Monday and is expected to be given candidature for the seat. Last week, former NCP MP Ranjitsinh Mohite Patil, son of senior NCP leader and sitting MP Vijaysinh Mohite Patil, had joined BJP. He was then touted to be the candidate for Madha.

“Madha Lok sabha seat is not favourable for us, so we took on two senior leaders, which will help us to take on NCP’s candidate. It will also have an impact in assembly polls,’’ said a senior BJP minister.

“Our battle is with the Baramatikars (Pawars). We were never treated fairly. Fadnavis is the first CM who did not ask which party we belong to before clearing development works,’’ said Naik Nimbalkar, as he joined the BJP.

In North East Mumbai, BJP has shied away from giving candidature so far to Somaiya, but party leaders said that the sitting MP was likely to get the seat.

“His (Somaiya) announcement will be made late. We want to avoid controversy and are trying to convince the Sena,’’ said a BJP senior leader.

NCP is yet to announce candidate for Raver seat in North Maharashtra, where the party will contest against BJP MP and daughter-in-law of senior leader Eknath Khadse, Raksha Khadse. The party has too many aspirants in this seat. A former party legislator from Bhusawal, Santosh Chaudhary, could be a front runner for the seat

SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
Start 14 Days Free Trial Subscribe Now
OPEN APP