Mumbai, Vidarbha and Western Maharashtra – the three regions where the main battle between the six political parties, saw several high-stakes battles. Of the ten key battles witnessed across Maharashtra, three are between the two Shiv Senas, three between the two Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) factions and two ‘friendly fights’ between the coalition partners. The 288-seat Maharashtra Assembly goes to polls on November 20 and results will be declared on November 23.
Key constituencies in Maharashtra poll battle
Kopri Pachpakhadi - Eknath Shinde Vs Kedar Dighe
Current Chief Minister Eknath Shinde seeks a fourth consecutive term from Thane’s Kopri-Pachpakhadi seat. Shiv Sena’s influence over Thane was first established in 1980s by Mr. Shinde’s mentor Anand Dighe. Since his rebellion against Uddhav Thackeray, Mr. Shinde’s iron hold over Thane remained with his faction in the Lok Sabha. His re-election bid was challenged by Mr. Dighe’s nephew Kedar Dighe, who has claimed stake as the ‘legitimate heir’ to the firebrand local icon’s legacy.
Mahim - Sadanand Sarvankar Vs Mahesh Sawant Vs Amit Thackeray
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) scion Amit Thackeray’s electoral debut has snowballed into a three-way contest as incumbent Shiv Sena MLA Sadanand Sarvankar refused to withdraw his nomination. Inspite of BJP’s ‘wish’ to back Mr. Thackeray’s candidacy as Raj Thackeray had offered his ‘unconditional’ support to BJP in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, Mr. Shinde has backed his MLA. The two men faced Shiv Sena (UBT)’s Mahesh Sawant, making it a three-way fight for the Sena bastion.
Worli - Milind Deora Vs Aditya Thackeray
A traditional Sena bastion falling under Mumbai South Lok Sabha seat, Worli saw a battle between Sena (UBT) incumbent MLA Aaditya Thackeray and Congress-turned-Shiv Sena MP Milind Deora. With the younger Thackeray having major clout in the area, Mr. Deora faced an uphill battle to shake off the ‘outsider’ tag in the seat held by Sena since 1990.
Baramati: Ajit Pawar Vs Yugendra Pawar
A prestige battle for the Pawars was fought in Baramati as NCP rebel and current party chief Ajit Pawar seeks re-election for the eighth time. Facing him was his nephew Yugendra Pawar (younger brother Shrinivas’s son), who is backed by the entire Pawar clan. Headed by Sharad Pawar, the family’s campaign against Ajit Pawar was so intense that the Deputy CM was stuck camping in Baramati for the last few days to fend off his challenge. In Lok Sabha, Baramati chose to re-elect NCP (SP) MP Supriya Sule over Ajit Pawar’s wife Sunetra.
Indapur: Dattatraya Bharao Vs Harshvardhan Patil
Seeking a fifth term in Indapur, Congress-turned-BJP minister Harshvardhan Patil, fought on an NCP(SP) ticket. After the BJP refused to field him, preferring Ajit Pawar’s aide and incumbent MLA Dattatray Bharne instead, Mr. Patil joined the Sharad Pawar faction just before these polls. Indapur was a Congress bastion since 1962 till it was grabbed by Mr. Bharne in 2014 when BJP, Shiv Sena, Congress and NCP contested separately.
Ambegaon: Dilip Walse Patil Vs Devdatta Nikam
Veteran NCP minister Dilip Walse Patil faced a tough re-election battle after Sharad Pawar fielded Mr. Patil’s close ally Devdatta Nikam. Holding the seat since 1990, the NCP minister, Mr. Patil, was brought into the electoral fray by Mr. Pawar himself. In the recent Lok Sabha polls, Sharad Pawar’s faction won Shirur under which Ambegaon falls.
Vandre East: Zeeshan Siddiqui Vs Varun Sardesai
Slain Congressman Baba Siddiqui’s son Zeeshan Siddiqui who fought on an NCP ticket faced Shiv Sena (UBT) debutant Varun Sardesai (Aaditya Thackeray’s maternal cousin) for the Vandre (East). As the two young turks seek to establish their presence in the Mumbai North Central seat, MNS fielded Trupti Sawant which may eat into the Marathi votes. Mr. Sardesai, who is currently the Sena youth wing Yuva Sena’s secretary sought to snatch the seat back into Sena hold. Mr. Siddiqui had won this seat in 2019 by defeating Sena’s former mayor Vishwanath Mahadeshwar.
Nagpur South-West: Devendra Fadnavis Vs Praful Gudadhe
Maharashtra’s two-time CM Devendra Fadnavis’s battle for re-election from Nagpur South-West was an uphill battle as he faced Congress’ Praful Gudadhe-Patil. Burdened with anti-incumbency of three terms, Mr. Fadnavis’ voters cited civic neglect, unemployment and inflation as major complaints which have gone unresolved. While Mr. Fadnavis trumped Mr. Gudadhe-Patil by 59,000 votes in 2014, the Congress candidate’s door-to-door interactions and local meetings gave him an edge in this saffron bastion.
Pandharpur: Samadhan Autade Vs Bhagirath Bhalke, Anil Sawant
Falling under the Solapur Lok Sabha constituency, Pandharpur witnessed a lot of rebel candidates and a ‘friendly’ fight between Congress and NCP(SP). Incumbent BJP MLA Samadhan Autade faced Congress’ Bhagirath Bhalke, son of Congress veteran Bharat Bhalke whose death necessitated a by-poll in 2021. The two contenders were also challenged by NCP(SP)’s Anil Sawant.
Mankhurd Shivajinagar: Nawab Malik Vs Suresh (Bullet) Patil, Abu Azmi
A close contest was fought in one of the Muslim-dominated seats in Mumbai – Mankhurd Shivajinagar. Three-time SP MLA Abu Azmi – the Maha Vikas Aghadi’s candidate - faced NCP strongman Nawab Malik and the Mahayuti’s official candidate Suresh (Bullet) Patil in a triangular fight. With BJP refusing to back Mr. Malik, the fight became a ‘friendly’ one between NCP and Shiv Sena itself.
Published - November 21, 2024 08:29 am IST
