Maharashtra polls: Families that will be fighting together

At least five Assembly segments in the state will have a close fight or tussle between cousins or uncle-nephews. In Beed district, Munde cousins – Dhananjay and

At least five Assembly segments in the state will have a close fight or tussle between cousins or uncle-nephews. In Beed district, Munde cousins – Dhananjay and Pankaja – are up against each other in Parli constituency, while Sandeep Kshirsagar has taken on his uncle Jaydutt in neighbouring Beed Assembly segment. The adjoining Latur will see a straight fight between Sambhaji and his uncle Ashok Nilangekar Patil from Nilanga.

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In Vidarbha, former chief minister Sudhakarrao Naik’s two nephews have thrown their hats in the ring from Pusad in Yavatmal, while Maoist-affected Gadchiroli district will see Dharmarao Atram (NCP) taking on his nephew Ambarishrao (BJP) from Aheri constituency.

Most of these contests have emerged in the backdrop of the feud within family. The fierce fight in two Beed constituencies will be among the few seats that will be closely watched. Leader of opposition in legislative council and NCP leader Dhananjay Munde was nurtured in politics by his uncle and senior BJP leader late Gopinath Munde for 20 years before differences started emerging between them in 2009. Dhananjay was undeclared ‘constituency manager’ for his uncle and had successfully emerged as successor of his uncle by winning district council elections. When the uncle decided to fight the Lok Sabha election in 2009, the obvious heir back home was Dhananjay. Senior Munde’s decision to choose daughter Pankaja (now, the rural development minister in Fadnavis government) over nephew triggered feud that went on widening over the years. The unrest within the Munde family was sensed by NCP leaders who saw a chance of making inroads in Beed district. Dhananjay challenged Munde’s fortress in Parli and captured local bodies as NCP’s lieutenant 2012 onwards. Dhananjay lost the 2014 Assembly polls against Pankaja by more than 22,000 votes. “The polls were fought after Gopinath Munde was killed in an accident in 2014. In the absence of the sympathy wave, it would have been a tough challenge for Pankaja,” said a NCP leader.

Sandeep Kshirsagar was groomed by his uncle and senior minister Jaydutt for more than a decade. Sandeep and his father Ravindra Kshirsagar would look after the political management in the constituency, while Jaidutt Kshirsagar would take care of the family dynasty handed over by his mother Kesharbai, who was a three-term MP. After the NCP projected Sandeep as its face in the district three years ago, the uncle chose to part ways and recently joined Shiv Sena.

In neighbouring Latur, former chief minister and senior Congress leader Shivaji Patil Nilangekar’s grandson and minister in Fadnavis government Sambhaji Patil Nilangekar is all set to retain Nilanga constituency by taking on his uncle Ashok. Sambhaji had defeated his uncle in 2014 by more than 27000 votes and grandfather Shivaji Patil Nilangekar in 2004. The tussle began immediately after Sambhaji Patil Nilangekar lost his father Dilip Patil Nilangekar at a young age.

In Vidarbha, the BJP has pitted Nilay Naik against NCP’s Indraneel Naik. Nilay is former minister Manohar Naik’s nephew, while Indraneel is his son. Both are nephews of former chief minister Sudhakarrao Naik and grandson of former chief minister Vasantrao Naik. “Nilay was groomed by Manohar Naik at local level. His political ambitions clashed with Manohar Naik’s son Indraneel leading to the family feud,” said a BJP leader from Yavatmal.

NCP’s former minister Dharmarao Baba Atram has been pitted against BJP’s Ambarishrao Raje Atram, who was a junior minister in Fadnavis government. They belong to the royal family in the tribal district of Gadchiroli. “It is a ‘dirty’ form of political patronage and its devolution. The political families have developed their ‘princely states’ and even voters have no objections to it. The ambitions within the family members grow, political tussle come to the fore during elections.

“The infighting has taken ugly shape from time to time,” said Deepak Pawar, assistant professor, department of civics and politics, Mumbai University.