Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar: State Social Justice Minister and district guardian minister Sanjay Shirsat has once again found himself on the back foot in Shiv Sena’s city politics. Days after the controversy surrounding the selection of the deputy mayor candidate, Shiv Sena chief and Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Tuesday announced Kishor Nagare as the group leader in the Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar Municipal Corporation (CSMC).
Party sources said that following the loss of the deputy mayor’s post, another key organisational position has now slipped from Shirsat’s hands, indicating a weakening of his influence within the party’s city unit.
Shirsat had actively backed his daughter, Harshada Shirsat, for the deputy mayor’s post. However, Shiv Sena district chief Rajendra Janjal managed to secure the position despite Shirsat’s lobbying. Janjal’s elevation was widely viewed within political circles as a significant setback for the minister, reflecting shifting power equations in the local Shiv Sena unit.
Shinde had convened a meeting of candidates who won in the recent zilla parishad, municipal council and municipal corporation elections. There was considerable expectation that the simmering differences between Shirsat and Janjal would be addressed during the meeting. However, the issue did not come up for discussion. Instead, Janjal was felicitated for becoming the deputy mayor, further underlining the leadership’s apparent endorsement of his position.
According to sources, Shinde announced Nagare’s appointment as group leader after holding consultations with Member of Parliament Sandipan Bhumre, Members of Legislative Assembly Vilas Bhumre, Ramesh Bornare and Balaji Kalyankar, along with Deputy Mayor Janjal and other senior party leaders. The decision is being seen as part of a broader effort by the party leadership to recalibrate internal alignments ahead of upcoming civic and organisational challenges.
