Nashik/Mumbai, May 2 (PTI) Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde’s son and Shiv Sena candidate Shrikant on Thursday filed nomination from the Kalyan Lok Sabha seat, while Union minister Dr Bharati Pawar of the BJP submitted papers from the Dindori constituency.
Another Shiv Sena candidate, Hemant Godse, filed nomination from the Nashik Lok Sabha constituency in north Maharashtra.
Sena candidate Shrikant Shinde is seeking re-election from the Kalyan constituency near Mumbai.
In the financial capital, Shiv Sena (UBT) candidate Amol Kirtikar and Congress nominee Bhushan Patil submitted their papers to election authorities to contest from Mumbai North West and Mumbai North constituencies, respectively.
Kirtikar is pitted against Shiv Sena MLA Ravindra Waikar, while Patil is taking on Union minister Piyush Goyal of the BJP.
The ruling Mahayuti alliance of the BJP, the Shiv Sena and the NCP took out a grand procession before Dr Pawar and Godse, both sitting MPs, filed their papers at the Nashik collector’s office.
Chief Minister Shinde, deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis, Nashik district guardian minister Dadaji Bhuse, state cabinet members Girish Mahajan, Chhagan Bhujbal and other leaders of the alliance were present on the occasion.
CM Shinde said Nashik and Dindori in north Maharashtra were bastions of the Shiv Sena-BJP and expressed confidence both the Mahayuti candidates will win with huge margins as Prime Minister Narendra Modi has achieved in ten years what Congress could not do in 60 years of its rule.
Godse, notably, had defeated united Nationalist Congress Party’s (NCP) candidate Chhagan Bhujbal from Nashik in 2014, and his nephew Sameer Bhujbal in 2019. Chhagan Bhujbal, now a Cabinet minister and member of the Ajit Pawar-led NCP, was keen on contesting from the seat this time, but pulled out of the race later.
Godse’s main rival in the election would be Rajabhau Waje of the Shiv Sena (UBT).
Bharati Pawar was earlier with the undivided NCP. She joined the BJP and won from Dindori in Nashik district 2019 in the first attempt, and was later made Union Minister of State for Health.
She will face Dr Bhaskar Bhagare of the NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar).
In Kalyan, chief minister Shinde and deputy CM Fadnavis held a massive roadshow for Shrikant Shinde before he filed his nomination.
Later, addressing a gathering in Kalyan, CM Shinde said his son has an “exemplary” track record as the Member of Parliament from the constituency in Thane district, the family’s political turf.
He urged Shiv Sena workers to mobilize voters and ensure high turnout on the election day (May 20).
The Chief Minister said every vote for Shrikant Shinde will be an endorsement for PM Modi’s vision of a prosperous India.
Nashik, Dindori and Kalyan are among 13 Lok Sabha constituencies in Maharashtra that will vote on May 20 in the fifth phase of elections. PTI PR COR KRK RSY
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