Aheri sees dynastic clash but the people feel betrayed

In Aheri, Maharashtra, locals express anger over poor roads and lack of development as the Atram family faces a multi-corner electoral battle.

AHERI (GADCHIROLI): Around 120 km from the Gadchiroli district headquarters is the town of Aheri, on the border of Maharashtra and Telangana. A tribal-dominated assembly constituency, Aheri is also in Maoist territory, and no stranger to violence.

Aheri sees dynastic clash but the people feel betrayed

But it’s something more basic that will influence the election outcome here – the absence of proper roads, other basic facilities, and employment opportunities. The locals feel angry and betrayed as the constituency has been a stronghold of the Aheri dynasty for decades, and yet the region is backward and ignored.

Currently, there are three candidates from the Atram family in the election fray – sitting MLA and Cabinet minister Dharamraobaba Atram, of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP); his daughter, Bhagyashree Atram, contesting on an NCP (SP) ticket; and Raje Ambrishrao, a former minister and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) rebel contesting as an Independent. Ambrishrao is also the son of Dharamraobaba’s cousin. Turning this election into a multi-corner battle is Congress rebel Hanumant Madhavi.

Things took a turn for the worse after an iron-ore mining project was set up in Surjagarh, in the district, around four years ago. The trucks carrying iron ore plying 24x7 on the 15-km stretch from the Chaprala Wildlife Sanctuary to Subhash Nagar have pitted the entire stretch with craters and potholes. Moreover, the trees on either side are entirely covered in red dust.

Deepak Madhavi, the sarpanch of Lagam village here, alleged that Atram has ignored the well-being of the locals. “The dust is killing us. For the last four years, no one has cared about our health and other difficulties. Even the local authorities have turned blind eye towards our suffering,” he said.

Atram alleged a conspiracy against him. “The works for repairing the roads have been approved but the contractors are not executing it owing to political pressure. There is a conspiracy against me. The contractors have been pressured not to start the works until the elections are over,” he alleged, claiming that the constituency has all the basic amenities.

Political twist

Aheri has been dominated by Atram’s family, a feudal dynasty that has exercised complete authority over several villages in Gadchiroli district. Raje Vishveshvar Rao was a Member of Parliament from the region, and a three-time MLA from Aheri, in the1960s. His nephew Dharamraobaba Atram is a four-time MLA from Aheri and has served as a minister in previous Congress-NCP governments. He is currently an NCP minister in the ruling Mahayuti government.

Ambrishrao was the BJP MLA in 2014-19 but the seat was snatched by Atram of the undivided NCP in 2019. Ambrishrao was expecting a BJP ticket this time too but the twist in the political tale came with a split in the NCP and the Ajit Pawar-led faction joining the Mahayuti government. Atram, who switched allegiance to Ajit Pawar, got a Cabinet berth and the ticket for Aheri as the constituency was assigned to the NCP in the Mahayuti seat-sharing arrangement. Since the BJP is an alliance partner in the Mahayuti coalition, Ambrishrao was unable to contest on a BJP ticket. Hence, he is in the fray as an Independent.

Daughter rebels

Atram, however, is facing a stiff contest from his daughter, Bhagyashree, who rebelled against her father in the run-up to the assembly polls. Bhagyashree had considered herself her father’s political heir as he had decided not to contest the Aheri assembly seat, as he was expecting a ticket for the Gadchiroli-Chimur Lok Sabha constituency. When the LS seat was allotted to the BJP, Atram changed his mind and decided to contest the assembly polls. Bhagyashree, who had been handling the constituency in the absence of her father, refused to back down. She is now going up against him on an NCP-SP ticket, as she felt the seat had been snatched from her.