The Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) on Tuesday finalised its candidates for the six Lok Sabha seats in Mumbai.
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According to party sources, Mazgaon legislator Bala Nandgaonkar will be contesting the elections from Mumbai South constituency. Another party leader, Shishir Shinde, will contest from Mumbai North East.
The other candidates are Sweta Paruleker (Mumbai South Central), Shilpa Sarpotdar (Mumbai North Central), Shalini Thackeray (Mumbai North West) and Shirish Parkar (Mumbai North). Except Nandgaonkar and Shinde, others are political novices.
Party sources said MNS chief Raj Thackeray’s aim is not to win seats but to secure six per cent of the total votes polled, which will enable the party to get recognition and a permanent symbol. The party is likely to announce the list of candidates later this week.
Naresh is a Special Correspondent with Hindustan Times, Mumbai, since 2005. He covers the real estate sector, in addition to doing political reportage.