Under pressure from BJP, Shinde drops two more sitting MPs

Under BJP pressure, Shiv Sena's Eknath Shinde dropped sitting MPs in Maharashtra. Some unhappy with the decisions ahead of Lok Sabha elections.

MUMBAI: Under pressure from the BJP, which is weighing the pros and cons in all the 48 Lok Sabha constituencies, Eknath Shinde on Wednesday dropped two more sitting MPs, Hemant Patil from Hingoli and Bhavana Gawali from Yavatmal-Washim. The CM has already dropped Ramtek MP Krupal Tumane and is likely to cede the Nashik constituency, where the sitting MP is his party’s Hemant Godse, to the NCP. The decision has not gone down well with the sitting MPs as well as local leaders of the party.

BJP leaders oppose sitting Sena MP Hemant Patil in Hingoli

The decisions are apparently guided by the homework done by the BJP for each constituency. The party had already advised Shinde whom to drop, as the ground-level survey on the prospects of the sitting MPs in question were supposedly not favourable. In some cases, local BJP leaders had been opposing the renomination of the MPs.

Shinde had been resisting the decision in the cases of Patil, Gawali and Godse and was in discussions with the BJP on this. Finally, on Wednesday, he had to make a decision, as the deadline to file nominations for Hingoli and Yavatmal-Washim is on Thursday.

The Shiv Sena will now field Baburao Kadam Kohlikar in Hingoli after declaring Hemant Patil’s name earlier. The Yavatmal-Washim ticket has been given to Hemant Patil’s wife, Rajashree, who hails from the area. Earlier, the Shiv Sena dropped Ramtek MP Krupal Tumane and fielded Congress MLA Raju Parve in his stead.

Hemant Godse, however, is unlikely to be renominated, as Shinde is expected to give the Nashik seat to the NCP as part of the seat-sharing deal. The Shiv Sena is also negotiating with the BJP on the Ratnagiri-Sindhudurg constituency, where the current MP is Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Vinayak Raut. The BJP wants to field union minister Narayan Rane.

Shiv Sena spokesperson Sanjay Shirsat claimed that the party had to change the candidates in Hingoli and Yavatmal-Washim, as there was a demand from certain sections of party workers. Asked why there was a delay in announcing other candidates, including from Kalyan where CM Shinde’s son Dr Shrikant is a sitting MP, Shirsat said, “We announced candidates for two seats, as they have to fill forms on Thursday. There is still time for the third phase.”

Meanwhile, an angry Godse is preparing to contest the election as an independent after meeting CM Shinde. “My elective merit will be seen,” he said. “I am a sitting MP and still a representative of the alliance and am going around Nashik showcasing my work.” Godse has been an MP for two terms and defeated both Chhagan Bhujbal and his nephew Sameer in two consecutive elections.

Apart from Godse, Hemant Patil and Bhavana Gawli also attended the meeting with the chief minister. They were upset about not getting a ticket, and Gawali met Shinde and deputy CMs Devendra Fadnavis and Ajit Pawar, requesting that she be retained.

Gawali has been facing an Enforcement Directorate case, and her associates have been arrested. She is the daughter of former MP Pundalik Gawali and is a three-time MP. She was called for questioning by the ED on many occasions but action against her was deferred after she joined the Eknath Shinde camp.

In Konkan, Kiran Samant, brother of industries minister Uday Samant, has been angling for the Sindhudurg Ratnagiri seat. He declared on social media that he was withdrawing but later deleted the post. Uday Samant said that they held a claim on the seat. Traditionally, the seat has been represented by the Shiv Sena, and Vinayak Raut of the Shiv Sena (UBT) is the sitting MP. Uddhav Thackeray has put him up as a candidate again.

The BJP also wants to wrest the Thane and South Mumbai seats from the Shiv Sena. In Thane, CM Shinde wants to field former mayor Naresh Mhaske, MLA Pratap Sarnaik or former MLC Ravindra Phatak.