Mumbai: The BJP, which had almost made up its mind to deny a ticket to senior leader Eknath Khadse may field his daughter Rohini Khadse in his place from Muktainagar seat in Jalgaon district.
The saffron party may also replace Vinod Tawade with Pravin Darekar, who is currenly a member of legislative council.
Rohini is currently the president of Jalgaon District Cooperative Bank, and is an advocate by profession. She is also the president of Aadishkati Muktai Cooperative Spinning Mill.
The move will help chief minister Devendra Fadnavis to kill two birds with one stone. First, it will sideline Khadse from active politics, and second, it will ensure the Khadse family and his Lewa Patil caste’s political support to BJP. Rohini will anyway not pose any threat to Fadnavis in years to come.
Khadse’s name was missing from the BJP’s three lists of candidates declared for the upcoming state assembly poll till now. He said the BJP has told him he would get party ticket for the assembly election. But, he made it clear that he would have to follow the party high command orders.
Meanwhile, Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar created a storm in political circle by claiming that Khadse has been in his touch for the last three months.
He was speaking with media in Thane after Jitendra Awhad filed his nomination papers. Pawar’s statement crated a flutter in political circle about Khadse’s possible joining the party.
It was also speculated that former chief minsiter and NCL leader Ajit Pawar was asked to stay back in Mumbai, keeping in mind this possibility. But speaking with reporters at Muktainagar, Khadse dismissed the claim, saying he had not met Pawar and that he did not take a decision of jumping the ship.
“Forget three days, I have not met Pawar saheb in the last three years. Do not trust rumours. Workers (his supporters) are asking me if I am taking any decision (regarding joining the NCP). I have not taken any such decision. And, there is no possibility of it,” Khadse said.
Tawade may be adjusted in Council: The BJP is almost in a mood of replacing Vinod Tawade with its leader Pravin Darekar in Borivali constituency.
CM Fadnavis was not happy with Tawade’s performance and complaints of corruption. Darekar who was legislator from Maharashtra Navinirman Sena (MNS) crossed over to BJP after his defeat in 2014 assembly election. He was soon made a member of legislative council.
Darekar is president of the Mumbai Cooperative Bank. Tawade may be adjusted in the Legislative Council in future, as he was once the leader of opposition in the council.
Vishakha Naik, daughter of Ram Naik, is also in the fray. Ram Naik a staunch BJP loyalist, retired as the Uttar Pradesh Governor recently, and is now active in the party.
He, too, is pressuring the party to give a ticket to his daughter as he once represented the North Mumbai Lok Sabha seat, which consists of Borivali.
Ramesh Singh Thakur in Malad: The BJP has decided to field Ramesh Singh Thakur from the Malad West constituency. Thakur was the Congress legislator from Kandivali till 2014.
But after the defeat in 2014 Assembly election, he moved to BJP. He will now fight against sitting Congress legislator Aslam Shaikh. The BJP on Thursday announced its third list, which includes only four names.
Parinay Fuke, a close confidant of CM Fadnavis, will contest from Sakoli, which is a known stronghold of Nana Patole, who challenged Nitin Gadkari in the Nagpur Lok Sabha election.
