Mumbai, Jun 17 (PTI) The BJP-led Mahayuti alliance heads into the biennial Maharashtra Legislative Council elections from local authorities’ constituencies seeking to win all 17 seats with voting slated in 12 on Thursday and the remaining five already decided through unopposed victories.
Members of local self-government bodies such as municipal corporations, councils, and zilla parishads are eligible to cast their votes between 8 am and 4 pm. Votes will be counted on June 22.
Although elections were notified for 17 seats, actual voting will be held only in 12 constituencies as candidates of the ruling alliance have already been elected unopposed in five seats, making their formal declaration a procedural formality.
The Mahayuti bloc consists of the BJP, Shiv Sena and NCP. The ruling coalition has already secured uncontested victories for BJP’s Arun Lakhani from the Wardha-Chandrapur-Gadchiroli constituency, NCP nominees Vikram Kakade from Pune and Aniket Tatkare from Raigad-Ratnagiri-Sindhudurg, and Shiv Sena candidates Ravindra Phatak from Thane and Dushyant Chaturvedi from Yavatmal.
With those seats in its pocket, the Mahayuti is focusing on the remaining 12 constituencies and is attempting to prevent the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) from gaining ground.
Despite its numerical advantage, the ruling alliance’s campaign has not been entirely free of difficulties. Internal differences surfaced in the Satara-Sangli and Nashik local authorities’ constituencies, forcing senior leaders to intervene and undertake damage-control measures.
The Satara-Sangli constituency has emerged as one of the most keenly watched contests. The BJP has fielded Dhairyasheel Kadam, while the NCP (SP) has nominated Abhaysinh Jagtap. The seat witnessed unease within the ruling alliance after sections of the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena expressed reservations over the seat-sharing arrangement.
The differences became visible when Maharashtra minister Shambhuraj Desai stayed away from a Mahayuti coordination meeting linked to the election. Desai later said he had repeatedly attempted to coordinate among alliance partners during municipal and district council elections, but had not received cooperation from BJP ministers.
Speculation over a possible split in alliance votes subsided after Shiv Sena rebel Tanajirao Patil withdrew from the contest, resulting in a direct fight between Kadam and Jagtap.
Nashik presented another challenge for the ruling coalition after BJP leader Gokul Gite entered the fray as an Independent against Mahayuti’s official nominee Narendra Darade of the Shiv Sena.
Gite’s candidature stemmed from dissatisfaction among a section of BJP leaders over the allocation of the seat to the Shiv Sena and local-level grievances against Darade.
The development prompted intervention from Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, his deputy Eknath Shinde, BJP minister Girish Mahajan, Shiv Sena cabinet member Uday Samant and other senior leaders. Mahajan took the lead in negotiations and held several rounds of discussions with the rebel camp in Nashik and Mumbai.
The efforts eventually succeeded, with Gite halting his campaign after talks with senior leaders, though his name remains on the ballot as the deadline for withdrawal had already expired.
The ruling alliance has also benefited from withdrawals by Opposition candidates in several constituencies. Shiv Sena (UBT) candidate Bal Mane withdrew from the Konkan constituency, while NCP (SP) nominee Shrikant Patil opted out in Pune, paving the way for Kakade’s unopposed victory.
Similarly, Shiv Sena (UBT) candidate Deoyani Patil Dongaonkar withdrew from the Aurangabad-Jalna constituency. Congress candidates Shailesh Agrawal and Sahebrao Kamble also left the poll ring from Wardha-Chandrapur-Gadchiroli and Yavatmal constituencies respectively, contributing to Mahayuti’s uncontested wins.
The Opposition has alleged that money power and political pressure played a role in securing withdrawals, allegations rejected by Mahayuti leaders.
A total of 452 voters are eligible to exercise their franchise in elections to the Nanded local authorities constituency, where three candidates are in the fray.
According to the local administration, polling centres have been established at revenue subdivision headquarters across Nanded district.
Of the 452 eligible voters, 224 are women and 228 men. The electorate comprises all members of the Nanded-Waghala Municipal Corporation as well as presidents and members of municipal councils and nagar panchayats across the district.
Polling arrangements have been made at tehsil offices in Kinwat, Hadgaon, Bhokar, Nanded, Kandhar, Dharmabad, Biloli and Deglur.
The largest polling centre will be at the Nanded tehsil office, where 108 voters, including members of the Nanded-Waghala Municipal Corporation and Ardhapur Nagar Panchayat, will be able to cast their votes.
Other polling stations will cater to voters from municipal councils and nagar panchayats in their respective jurisdictions.
The counting of votes will begin at 8 am on June 22 at the district collectorate premises in Nanded, officials added.
A total of 367 voters are eligible to exercise their franchise in elections to the Osmanabad-Latur-Beed constituency. Polling will be held at designated centres established across all tehsils of the district, officials said.
BJP candidate Basavaraj Patil Murumkar and Congress nominee Mahesh Deshmukh are in the fray for the legislative council seat. PTI ND COR RSY
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