The announcement by the son of CM Eknath Shinde, Shrikant Shinde, naming Hemant Godse as the candidate from the Nashik LS constituency, has irked Mahayuti partners BJP and NCP (Ajit Pawar faction). The BJP state leadership, which too had staked a claim to this seat, dismissed the news and sent minister Girish Mahajan to Nashik on Thursday to take stock of the situation.
Local leader Shantigiri Maharaj had expressed his desire to contest the Lok Sabha polls as a Mahayuti candidate, having recently met Shinde with a request. But Shrikant Shinde's announcement has irked the Maharaj and his followers. The announcement has also not gone down well with alliance partner NCP, as they were seeking the seat for Pankaj Bhujbal, the nephew of senior NCP minister Chhagan Bhujbal.
Shantigiri Maharaj Considers MVA Candidacy in Nashik
According to the reports, Maharaj has now had a word with Shiv Sena UBT office bearer and Uddhav Thackeray aide Milind Narvekar. Although there is no official announcement, sources indicate that Maharaj is likely to contest as a Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) candidate from Nashik. While all the candidates of the Mahayuti are still to be declared, talks for a few critical Lok Sabha seats are still on. The BJP has named 20 candidates so far.
Pravin Darekar Questions Shrikant Shinde's Authority
Shrikant Shinde does not have the authority to declare the names of candidates. If CM Shinde had made this announcement, we could have taken it seriously. Every leader has an ambition to get a constituency which they feel is in their favour, but in an alliance, you have to take all stakeholders into confidence, said BJP leader Pravin Darekar.
Hemant Godse Clarifies The Air
Nominee Hemant Godse said, The announcement made by our leader MP Shrikant Shinde is informal. The official announcement will soon happen, when the party releases the official list. At that function, the people of Nashik wanted him to announce my candidature. Respecting their feelings, he made the announcement.
