Mumbai: The suspense over candidates for the Maharashtra Legislative Council elections ended on Thursday, with major political parties finalising their nominees and filing nominations in the State Assembly. With exactly ten candidates in the fray for ten seats and no additional valid nominations expected, the elections are almost certain to be held unopposed.
The ruling BJP has fielded six candidates—Sunil Karjatkar, Madhvi Naik, Sanjay Bhende, Vivek Kolhe, Pramod Jathar and Pradnya Satav—while the Shiv Sena has nominated Bacchu Kadu and Neelam Gorhe. The Nationalist Congress Party has fielded Zeeshan Siddiqui as its sole candidate, while the Opposition-backed nominee is Ambadas Danve of the Shiv Sena.
In a significant development, just ahead of filing his nomination, Bacchu Kadu merged his outfit, Prahar Janshakti Party, with the Shiv Sena led by Eknath Shinde. The move ended speculation over his political future and secured him a place among the ruling alliance nominees.
The Congress, after prolonged deliberations, decided against fielding its own candidate and extended support to Ambadas Danve. Senior Congress leader Vijay Wadettiwar was present during Danve’s nomination filing, signalling a last-minute consensus within the Opposition camp.
Despite three Independent candidates filing nominations, their applications are likely to be rejected as they reportedly lack the mandatory support of ten proposers (MLAs). This effectively clears the path for an uncontested election.
The distribution of seats reflects the current strength of parties in the Assembly. The BJP, with 131 MLAs, the Shiv Sena (Shinde faction) with 57, and the NCP (Ajit Pawar faction) with 40 together ensure the ruling Mahayuti alliance comfortably secures eight seats. The Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA), with a combined strength of 46, is in a position to win only one seat, which has gone to Danve.
Interestingly, both Shiv Sena and NCP witnessed intense internal competition for nominations. In the NCP, nearly 75 aspirants were in the race, including Amol Mitkari, who later expressed his displeasure on social media after being overlooked. The party leadership, however, backed Zeeshan Siddiqui, son of late MLA Baba Siddiqui.
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Similarly, the Shiv Sena kept its cards close to the chest until the last moment, eventually accommodating Kadu and renominating Gorhe.
Meanwhile, a separate by-election will be conducted for a vacant seat following the resignation of Pradnya Satav, who switched allegiance from Congress to the BJP. Her term was originally set to run until July 2030.
The scrutiny of nomination papers is scheduled for May 2, while the last date for withdrawal is May 4. With no additional candidates entering the fray, the outcome appears a foregone conclusion, marking yet another instance of consensus-driven legislative council polls in the state.
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