Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) candidates for the Baramati, Shirur, and Pune Lok Sabha seats, Supriya Sule, Amol Kolhe, and Ravindra Dhangekar respectively, filed their nomination papers on Thursday. On the other hand, the Mahayuti candidate for the Baramati Lok Sabha seat, Sunetra Pawar, the wife of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, also filed her nomination.
Interestingly, Ajit Pawar himself filed a set of nomination papers for the Baramati Lok Sabha seat, which an NCP functionary described as a backup plan in case Sunetra Pawar's nomination does not withstand scrutiny or any discrepancies are found in it.
Congress leaders Balasaheb Thorat and Vishwajeet Kadam, among others, accompanied Sule, the sitting MP from Baramati and daughter of NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar, as she filed the nomination papers before the returning officer at the Council Hall in Pune.
Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis, and NCP leader Praful Patel were present when Sunetra Pawar, who is making her political debut, filed her nomination at the Council Hall later in the day.
Before the filing of her nomination, a campaign rally was held by the ruling Mahayuti constituents - Shiv Sena led by CM Shinde, BJP, and Ajit Pawar-headed NCP. Addressing the rally, Shinde said a change is inevitable in Baramati and gave the slogan - "Abki baar, Sunetra Pawar". Fadnavis said a new history will be created in Baramati as the "daughter-in-law of Baramati" will go to Delhi.
Sunetra Pawar said Prime Minister Narendra Modi has done tremendous work and the world has taken note of it. "Be it infrastructure, building of roads, Chandrayaan, Modiji has been instrumental in doing tremendous work and that is why he is in the minds of the people," she said.
Union Minister Ramdas Athawale, who heads the Republican Party of India (A) and is a BJP ally, also attended the rally.
On the other hand, the MVA also held a massive show of strength. Several leaders, including NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar, attended.
Before filing her nomination papers, Sule paid tribute to Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar in Pune and said that this is a battle of ideas, and she is confident that after seeing her work, the public will stand with her.
"I contest elections to serve the country. I have always worked within the framework of the Constitution. A leader always has to lead from the front and has very little time for emotions. I don't see this as a contest. This is a battle of ideas. After seeing my work and my merit, I am confident that the public will stand with me. The biggest problem in this constituency is water. So I think the administration needs to pay more attention to this drought today," she said.
The polls in Baramati will be held on May 7, while Shirur and Pune vote on May 13.
