NCP fields Khadse, Nimbalkar for Maharashtra Legislative Council polls

Mumbai: The NCP on Thursday named Eknath Khadse and Ramraje Naik Nimbalkar as its candidates for the upcoming polls to 10 seats of the Maharashtra Legislative Council.

Nimbalkar is the present chairman of the Upper House of the state Legislature. Khadse, the former state revenue minister, had resigned from the BJP in 2020 and joined the Sharad Pawar-led NCP, which shares power with the Shiv Sena and Congress in Maharashtra.

The elections for 10 seats in the Upper House of the state Legislature will be held on June 20. The opposition BJP in the state has fielded five candidates, while ruling allies Shiv Sena and Congress have named two candidates each.

The 10 retiring members are - Legislative Council Chairman Ramraje Naik Nimbalkar, state Industries Minister Subhash Desai, Diwakar Raote, Leader of Opposition in the Upper House Pravin Darekar, Prasad Lad, Maratha leader Vinayak Mete and former minister Sadabhau Khot- both allies of the BJP, Surjitsinh Thakur, Ravindra Phatak, and Sanjay Daund.

Of them, Nimbalkar and Daund belong to the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) while Darekar, Thakur, and Lad are from the BJP. Raote, Desai and Phatak are from the Shiv Sena.

Members of the state Legislative Assembly constitute the electoral college for the MLC polls.