LS polls: Sunetra Pawar fielded against Supriya Sule in NCP stronghold Baramati

Ajit Pawar split the NCP in July last year and joined the Shiv Sena-Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) alliance with 40 MLAs

Mumbai: Baramati Lok Sabha constituency in Maharashtra’s Pune district will witness a fight between Supriya Sule, daughter of Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) founder Sharad Pawar, and Sunetra Pawar, wife of senior Pawar’s nephew Ajit Pawar.

Sunetra Pawar (left) with Supriya Sule (File Photo)

Ajit Pawar split the NCP in July last year and joined the Shiv Sena-Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) alliance with 40 MLAs. Since then, it became clear that he would try to snatch the Baramati constituency from his uncle.

Sule has won the constituency thrice and is now seeking re-election, whilst Sunetra, who has never contested any election so far, will try to wrest the Pawar family bastion from her.

The Sharad Pawar-led NCP announced its first list of five candidates on Saturday which included Sule, who has been fielded from the Baramati Lok Sabha seat, Amol Kolhe from Shirur, Nilesh Lanke from Ahmednagar, Amar Kale from Wardha, and Bhaskar Bagare has been fielded from Dindori Lok Sabha constituency.

Of the five candidates, Sule and Kolhe are sitting MPs. Lanke was an MLA from the Ajit Pawar faction, but he resigned on Friday to join senior Sharad’s party. Kale quit the Congress to join Sharad-led. He is a former legislator.

Less than two hours after the Sharad faction declared Sule’s candidature, Sunil Tatkare, state president of the Ajit Pawar faction, announced Sunetra’s name as the party candidate from Baramati.

Sunetra had been campaigning in Baramati even before her candidature was announced. Her candidature also evoked opposition from Ajit’s political rivals, such as Shiv Sena leader Vijay Shivtare, who announced that he would contest as an independent.

BJP leader Harshvardhan Patil too objected to the candidature, but both of them were pacified by deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis.

“People need change in Baramati,” Sunetra said in her reaction to the media after her candidature was declared.

Maharashtra, which has 48 Lok Sabha seats, the second highest after Uttar Pradesh (80), will go to polls in five phases starting from April 19. The counting of votes will take place on June 4.