While Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and his deputy Devendra Fadnavis are trying to ensure the February 26 bypolls to the Kasba Peth and Chinchwad Assembly seats are held unopposed, the Shiv Sena (UBT) Sunday once again rejected their appeal.
On Friday, Fadnavis, who was in Pune, said, “We have earlier made efforts to ensure unopposed elections in Kasba and Chinchwad seats. We will again renew our efforts by approaching the Opposition parties on this issue.”
Before this, Chief Minister Shinde had also made a similar appeal.
Shiv Sena (UBT) chief spokesperson Sanjay Raut said Sunday, “If they are making the efforts to get unopposed elections, we welcome their efforts. But so far, we have not received any call from the chief minister and I don’t think, he will make such a call”.
Raut said, “Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had recently said that the bitterness in Maharashtra politics should end. And therefore their efforts to approach the opposition parties for unopposed elections are welcome. But despite his statement to end bitterness in Maharashtra politics, Fadnavis has made no further effort on this front. The ruling parties have been wreaking vengeance on Opposition leaders. They are filing false cases against opposition leaders. They are taking politics to a new low.”
The Sena leader also pointed out that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has announced its candidates for both seats. On Saturday, the BJP announced its candidates for the bypolls, which are being held after the death of the sitting MLAs.
Ashwini Jagtap, the wife of former MLA late Laxman Jagtap, will be the BJP candidate from the Chinchwad Assembly constituency and Hemant Rasane, Pune Municipal Corporation’s former standing committee chairman, will contest from the Kasba Peth Assembly seat.
Jagtap, who died on January 3, represented the Chinchwad seat, and Mukta Tilak, who passed away on December 22 last year, was the Kasba Peth MLA.
“The MVA is in the process of declaring the names of its candidates. The Congress is contesting the Kasba seat, while the NCP will contest the Chinchwad. The Shiv Sena is also eager to contest the seat. We are preparing for the contest and therefore, there can be no unopposed election.”
Citing the reason why the ruling parties—the BJP and Balasahebanchi Shiv Sena—do not want a contest for Kasba and Chinchwad seats, Raut said, “The recent MLC elections have proved that the popularity of the MVA parties was rising. The people of the state have not liked the way the MVA government was toppled. There is anger among the people against the power usurpers. If elections are held and they lose both seats, it will come as a huge embarrassment for the ruling parties. They are afraid of a big defeat and a big loss of face. They want to avoid such a situation.”
Raut said the ruling parties do not have strong candidates in both seats, which he said was another problem they are facing. “On the other hand, the MVA has strong candidates for both seats. This has further put the ruling parties in a spot of bother,” he said.
Raut said the ruling parties have been talking of Maharashtra’s political tradition—under which bypolls following a legislator’s death are largely uncontested with a family member of the deceased MLA being declared a candidate—they ignored it. “In at least three elections, they refused to follow the tradition. And now they want us to follow the tradition. No, we don’t agree to their game plan which is about suiting their own convenience,” he said.
The last date to file nominations is February 7. Results will be declared on March 2.
