Shiv Sena (UBT) has announced the lists of the candidates who will contest the upcoming Lok Sabha elections from the state. The suspense on the candidature from Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar was brought to an end after the announcement of the name of former MP Chandrakant Khaire in the list.
There was a tough fight between Chandrakant Khaire and Ambadas Danve, who is the Leader of Opposition in the Legislative Council for the candidature from Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar. There was no claim from Congress and NCP (SP) on this seat, as Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar is the stronghold of Shiv Sena for the past several years.
Chandrakant Khaire had lost the Lok Sabha elections in 2019 to AIMIM candidate Imtiaz Jaleel. Though there was a close fight between independent candidate Harshvardhan Jadhav and Khaire, Jaleel emerged victorious.
After the drift in Shiv Sena, Khaire and Danve had not joined the Shinde group and remained with Uddhav Thackeray. Ambadas Danve was willing to contest the Lok Sabha election from Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar and both these leaders had openly expressed their desires for Lok Sabha. Chandrakant Khaire is said to be close to Uddhav Thackeray and as a result, he managed to get the ticket, the political experts opined.
Khaire has completed four terms as MP in the Lok Sabha and won the elections from Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar in 1999, 2004, 2009, and 2014. Now, he is expecting his fifth tenure in 2024 in the lower house of the Parliament.
On the other hand, in Mahayuti, the BJP has claimed the seat of Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar and so has the Shiv Sena. The name of the candidate for Mahayuti is yet to be announced. Union Minister of State for Finance Dr. Bhagwat Karad is the possible candidate for BJP and District Guardian Minister Sandipan Bhumre can be the candidate for Shiv Sena. It will be interesting to watch who will win this battle.
There will be a direct contest in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar between Maha Vikas Aghadi and Mahayuti; and AIMIM will also have a strong influencing factor in the city, which can impact the results. A few days back, Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi had also claimed this seat and it will be interesting to see who will be the authorized candidates from various parties.
