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Vikhe Patil, Jayant Patil suffer setbacks in cooperative bank polls
Maharashtra DCC bank polls dealt setbacks to Jayant Patil and Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil, while BJP and allies gained ground across three districts.
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Two political heavyweights of Maharashtra – former NCP (SP) state president Jayant Patil and BJP cabinet minister Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil – suffered setbacks in the district central cooperative (DCC) bank elections, results of which were declared on Tuesday.
Elections to the Sangli, Ahilyanagar and Satara DCC banks were held on November 2. The polls are politically significant as these financial institutions play a crucial role in the rural economy and wield considerable influence over the cooperative sector in their respective districts.
Sangli DCC Bank
In the Sangli DCC Bank elections, Jayant Patil’s political rival and BJP MLA from Jat, Gopichand Padalkar, registered a convincing victory from the Jat Primary Agricultural Credit Society (PACS) constituency. He defeated Vinod Pawar, who was backed by the MVA camp. Vinod is the brother of Sunil Pawar, who is a local BJP Zilla Parishad (ZP) member, and Sunil had campaigned against Vinod in the elections.
Padalkar secured 54 votes, defeating Pawar by 20 votes. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis called the BJP MLA to congratulate him on what he described as a remarkable victory.
Elections were held in only six of the 21 seats on the bank’s board of directors; the remaining 15 candidates were elected unopposed.
Besides Padalkar, former NCP MP Sanjaykaka Patil won the Tasgaon PACS seat, defeating NCP (SP) candidate Suman Patil, wife of former state home minister R R Patil, by two votes. In the Kavathe Mahankal PACS constituency, former minister Ajitrao Ghorpade of the NCP defeated Shiv Sena’s Tanaji Patil. The remaining three contested seats were won by candidates belonging to the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA).
“My political opponents worked overtime to ensure my defeat in the polls. But the voters of Jat PACS reposed their trust in me. My opponents even tried to prevent me from contesting by raising questions about my nomination. The voters have given them a befitting reply,” Padalkar said.
Jayant Patil did not respond to calls seeking his reaction.
In the 21-member board, the Congress has won six seats, the BJP five, the NCP three, the NCP (SP) four and the Shiv Sena three. The Congress, with the highest number of seats, is likely to stake claim to the chairman’s post.
Ahilyanagar DCC Bank
In the Ahilyanagar DCC Bank elections, NCP (SP) MP Nilesh Lanke defeated BJP’s Rahul Shinde from the Parner PACS constituency by 24 votes. Shinde is considered a loyalist of Vikhe Patil.
After his victory, Lanke took an indirect swipe at Vikhe Patil and his son Sujay without naming them.
“One could own factories, educational institutions and immense wealth. But I have the blessings of the voters,” he said.
Ahead of the elections, Vikhe Patil and senior Congress leader Balasaheb Thorat had appealed to political leaders to reach a consensus and avoid elections, citing the drought situation. However, Lanke refused to agree to an unopposed arrangement, given his longstanding political rivalry with Vikhe Patil.
Another significant result was the defeat of sitting NCP MLA from Akole, Kiran Lahamate. Sanjeevani Shinde-Gaykar, considered close to Thorat, defeated him.
Vikhe Patil and Thorat, however, managed to secure 17 of the 21 seats on the bank’s board, putting their group in a strong position to claim the chairman’s post. There is speculation that Vikhe Patil’s son Sujay could become chairman after winning unopposed from the Rahata PACS constituency.
Speaking to reporters, Sujay congratulated Lanke on his victory.
“There is no personal rivalry between politicians in the district. The elections were held without party affiliations. Our aim is to strengthen the hands of the farmers of the district,” he said. He also denied being in the race for the chairman’s post.
Satara DCC Bank
In Satara, the contest for the DCC Bank board was largely centred on rival factions within the Mahayuti alliance. Elections were held in 12 constituencies, while candidates in the remaining nine seats were elected unopposed.
District guardian minister and Shiv Sena leader Sambhuraj Desai contested the DCC Bank elections for the first time in his political career. He defeated BJP’s Satyajeetsinh Patil from the Patan PACS constituency by 12 votes.
In the Man PACS constituency, BJP minister Jaykumar Gore defeated his brother Shekhar, who contested on a Shiv Sena ticket, and NCP candidate Manoj Pol.
“My victory is the result of the efforts of party workers and my son Yashraj, who worked hard for it,” Gore said.
He added that a member of the Desai family was returning to the bank’s board after four decades. His late grandfather, Balasaheb Desai, had earlier served as a director.
In the 21-member board, the BJP won nine seats, the NCP eight and the Shiv Sena four.
