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By:

Abhijit Mulye

21 August 2024 at 11:29:11 am

High-stakes chess beneath the surface

BJP Candidates coming out after filing their nomination for the upcoming Legislative Council Polls from Vidhan Bhavan in Mumbai on Thursday. Pic: Bhushan Koyande Mumbai: Typically, when a ruling coalition enjoys a formidable and comfortable majority, elections to the Rajya Sabha and the State Legislative Council are quiet, predictable affairs. They are often viewed as mere formalities, rarely capturing the public imagination or dominating front-page headlines. Historically, these indirect...

High-stakes chess beneath the surface

BJP Candidates coming out after filing their nomination for the upcoming Legislative Council Polls from Vidhan Bhavan in Mumbai on Thursday. Pic: Bhushan Koyande Mumbai: Typically, when a ruling coalition enjoys a formidable and comfortable majority, elections to the Rajya Sabha and the State Legislative Council are quiet, predictable affairs. They are often viewed as mere formalities, rarely capturing the public imagination or dominating front-page headlines. Historically, these indirect elections only become newsworthy under specific conditions: either the ruling coalition is plagued by internal fissures, or the opposition is too fragmented to put up a united front. In Maharashtra, however, the political landscape remains highly volatile. Recently, the Rajya Sabha elections became the center of intense media scrutiny, and over the past week, the Legislative Council polls followed suit. Although all ten candidates—nine from the ruling alliance and one from the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA)—are now set to be elected unopposed, the intricate backroom maneuvers that led to this truce kept the state’s political circles buzzing. Interestingly, the reason for this heightened news value can be traced to both a subtle tug-of-war within the ruling combine and a visibly weakened opposition. Shifting Strategy The maneuvering within the opposition ranks has been particularly telling. A major focal point of the election buildup was the anticipated candidacy of Shiv Sena (UBT) Chief Uddhav Thackeray. After generating considerable hype and speculation about a potential return to the legislature, Thackeray ultimately chose to withdraw from the electoral fray. This sudden pullback forced a rapid recalibration within the MVA. Initially, the Congress party had adopted an aggressive posture, declaring its intention to field a candidate if Thackeray decided against contesting. However, following closed-door deliberations with Shiv Sena (UBT) leadership, the Congress quietly backed down. Why the state Congress leadership so readily acquiesced to this sudden change in strategy, sacrificing a potential seat, remains a mystery and a subject of intense debate among political observers. On the other side of the aisle, the ruling Mahayuti coalition maximized this electoral opportunity to consolidate its political base, reward loyalists, and balance complex regional equations. The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) strategically paved the way for the political rehabilitation of former Congress legislator Zishan Siddique by nominating him to the Legislative Council. This calculated move introduces a prominent new Muslim face for the party, likely intended to fill the leadership vacuum in Mumbai left by veteran leader Nawab Malik. Meanwhile, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde used his nominations to send a definitive message about the premium he places on loyalty. By securing another term for Dr. Neelam Gorhe, Shinde demonstrated that those who stood by his faction would be adequately rewarded. Furthermore, by bringing Vidarbha strongman Bachchu Kadu into the fold, Shinde has attempted to anchor his party’s future and expand its footprint in a region predominantly controlled by his senior alliance partner, the BJP. The Bharatiya Janata Party, playing its characteristic long game, meticulously ensured that its list of six candidates struck the perfect organizational, social, and political balance. Battle for LOP Despite these broader alliance strategies, the most consequential nomination in this electoral cycle is arguably that of Ambadas Danve. Barely six months after completing his tenure in the Upper House and stepping down from the prestigious post of Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Council, Danve has been nominated once again by the Shiv Sena (UBT). With his return to the house, there is a strong possibility that he will reclaim his former post. This specific development highlights a much deeper crisis within the Congress. Following Danve’s brief retirement, the Congress had naturally emerged as the largest opposition party in the Upper House. This mathematical advantage theoretically paved the way for their Kolhapur strongman, Satej “Banti” Patil, to lay claim to the Leader of the Opposition’s chair. However, the sudden defection of Congress MLC Pradnya Satav, who switched loyalties to the BJP, severely dented the party’s numbers. Her departure brought the Congress’s strength in the house just below that of the Shiv Sena (UBT). Stripped of its numerical superiority overnight, the Congress was relegated to being a mute spectator, unable to assert its rightful claim. Internal Dissent This series of tactical defeats has triggered palpable frustration within the Congress’s state unit. One senior Congress leader, speaking on the condition of anonymity, expressed deep disappointment with the state leadership’s inability to protect the party’s interests. “Everyone has personal political ambitions, but leaders must learn the ways to collectively move ahead and strategize,” the leader remarked, attributing the party’s current stagnation in Maharashtra to this lack of cohesive vision. In short, these Legislative Council elections have delivered one message loud and clear: even when everything appears calm and stable on the surface, the relentless machinery of politics continues to churn behind the scenes. No political player in Maharashtra can afford to rest assured or sit idle under the illusion that there are no major state elections until 2029.

Is Rohit Pawar being groomed for a bigger role?

Updated: Oct 25, 2024

A CLOSE CONNECT WITH THE ELECTORATE AND HIS GREAT UNCLE’S FAITH IN HIM MAKE ROHIT PAWAR A FORCE TO BE RECKONED WITH IN THE NCP(SP)


Rohit Pawar

Mumbai: Rohit Pawar has the right credentials---he’s young, is popular in his constituency, delivers impactful speeches, has stayed loyal to his great uncle Sharad Pawar after the undivided Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) split and bears the Pawar surname.


When Pawar senior asked Rohit to sit beside him during a press conference at his Modi Baug residence in Pune last year, it was a signal to party workers and the people at large that he had found a successor in the third generation of his family to lead the party. “I don’t have to worry about my old colleagues who have joined the other party. My priority is to create new leadership for Maharashtra,” he had said then. Ever since, Rohit’s role and popularity in the party are growing.


During the Lok Sabha elections this year, he toiled to ensure a victory for his aunt Supriya Sule while politely sidestepping questions about his other aunt and Sule’s political opponent, Sunetra Pawar.


Sauve and a son-of-the-soil together, Rohit has worked his way into the politics of Baramati by getting elected to the Zilla Parishad in 2017. Two years later, his uncle announced his candidature to the Karjat-Jamkhed constituency and Rohit won with a handsome margin. He showed no hurry to jump into a ministerial responsibility unlike some of his peers and chose to continue his work at the grassroots level.


Rohit is yet another member of the large and closely knit Pawar family. His grandfather Dr Appasaheb Pawar was Sharad Pawar’s older brother. Rohit’s parents, too, are closely involved in the social and educational activities of Baramati with strong connections with the people. His father Rajendra is chairman of Baramati Agro that provides employment to hundreds of people with a boost to the rural economy. He also heads the Agricultural Development Trust in Baramati that is at the forefront of cutting-edge research in the fields of agriculture and provides assistance and technical know-how to agriculturists. Rohit’s mother has struck a chord with the women of Baramati and of her son’s electoral constituency by running hostels, providing sanitary care and working for the upliftment and empowerment of rural women.


Encouraged by his great uncle, Rohit undertook a Yuva Sangharsha Yatra which began from Pune in October last year but suspended it in solidarity with the demand for Maratha reservations. It was an attempt to engage with the youth across the state especially in the western Maharashtra belt which has been the party bastion.


Rohit’s elevation in the party is believed to have ruffled Ajit’s feathers especially after he picked Rohit for the Maharashtra legislative party elections in 2019. Party leaders say that it was clear that the senior Pawar favoured Rohit over Ajit’s son Parth who had unsuccessfully contested the Lok Sabha polls. “Ajit Pawar had made enemies within the party’s senior leadership. Rohit doesn’t come with that baggage and he’s not spoken against his uncle Ajit either. He is more acceptable to party workers for his more approachable manner of working,” says a party insider. 


Ajit’s departure has made way for a bigger role for Rohit. He’s seen to be dynamic but not aggressive; is softer in his approach and interactions. His elevation to the president’s role of the Maharashtra Cricket Association, following in Pawar senior’s footsteps, is also seen as a stamp of approval.

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