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2019 Lok Sabha elections: Rana versus Adsul, the big fight in Maharashtra’s Amravati
There are no jobs, no airport and weak rail connectivity, compared to Nagpur. The region has become infamous for other reasons such as farmer suicides and malnutrition deaths among tribals in Melghat.
This election, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) says it is banking on its development agenda. Union minister Nitin Gadkari recently declared he took up development projects worth ₹70,000 crore in Nagpur, from where he is seeking a second term. But in Amravati, 150km away from Nagpur, the situation is quite different.
In the absence of major industries, Amravati is lagging behind in development. There are no jobs, no airport and weak rail connectivity, compared to Nagpur. The region has become infamous for other reasons such as farmer suicides and malnutrition deaths among tribals in Melghat.
For the second time, the region is seeing a fight between Sena heavyweight and two-time MP Anandrao Adsul and Navneet Kaur Rana, a former Telugu film actor and Yuva Swabhimani Paksha (YSP) candidate, who has support from the Congress, NCP and Republican Party of India (RPI) led by Rajendra Gavai.
Adsul, the sitting MP of Amravati, is also a three-term MP from Buldhana. Kaur is the wife of Ravi Rana, an MLA from Badnera, which is a part of the Amravati Lok Sabha constituency.
Last time, Adsul won more than 1.37 lakh votes. Political pundits believe the tide will turn if Dalit and Muslim votes get consolidated, as the combination forms one-third of the population of the constituency.
Amravati was traditionally a Congress bastion, which it lost to CPI for the first time in 1989. In 1991, former president Pratibha Patil snatched the seat back . But after the 1996 elections, the Congress has not fielded any candidate from here.
The constituency is dominated by Kunbis (Marathas in western Maharashtra), who comprise over 30% of the total population. They are followed by Dalits (Schedule Caste) (20%), Muslims (18%) and Other Backward Classes (OBC) such as Mali (10%). “Both Muslims and Dalit are not happy with the current regime. If their votes are consolidated in Kaur’s favour, Adsul will be in trouble, but it is not as easy as it seems,” said Pradeep Deshpande, senior journalist from Amravati, hinting at other two candidates in the fray — Gunwant Deopare from Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi led by Prakash Ambedkar and Arun Wankhede of Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), who can play spoilers, giving an advantage to Adsul.
VBA has All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) in its fold to attract Muslims.
Deopare is a local developer and had contested the last general polls as a BSP candidate. He had secured 98,200 votes, which comes to 9.78% of the total votes polled in the constituency in 2014. The BSP has also been a factor in Amravati, as it has dedicated voters in the constituency. In 2009, its candidate, Gangadhar Gade, got 41,775 votes, which were 5.70% of the total votes polled in the constituency.
“The Congress-NCP is claiming that Kunbi, Dalit and Muslim are in their favour, but in Amravati, the situation is different. They have no candidate. Kaur would have been at an advantage if she was contesting the polls on the Congress or NCP’s symbol. Adsul is also facing anti-incumbency,” said Subhash Gavai, principal at Shakuntalabai Dhabekar College, Karanja (Washim) and a member of board of study for political science at Sant Gadge Baba Amravati University.
Another advantage for Adsul is dedicated Sena voters, but the party’s organisational structure in Amravati is very weak. “He [Adsul] didn’t allow the local leadership to grow. So he is not getting full-fledged support from local Sena leaders. He is also not on good terms with state transport minister Diwakar Raote, sampark pramukh (communication chief, an important position in the party). Ideally, Raote should be in Amravati, but he is not. The BJP’s local unit is also not happy with Adsul,” said a Sena leader.
Both the BJP and Sena have already forged a pre-poll alliance. The BJP’s strong presence in the constituency may help Adsul sail through, but it is a hitch too. The local BJP unit was not in favour of Adsul, as they wanted the seat from the Sena. “In the BJP’s inner circle, there’s a phrase – Modi zaroori hai aur Adsul majboori hai (Modi is necessary, but Adsul is an obligation),” said a senior BJP leader.
The Amravati Lok Sabha constituency is divided into six Assembly constituencies. Of them, three constituencies — Amravati, Daryapur, Melghat – are with the BJP, one is with the Congress (Teosa) and the rest — Achalpur and Badnera have independent MLAs Bachchu Kadu and Ravi Rana, respectively. “The BJP is ruling six panchayat samitis in Amravati district. Of total 10 nagar parishads, six are with the BJP. We also have 45 of the 87 members in the city municipal corporation,” said Dinesh Suryawanshi, district BJP president.
In 2014, Rana got NCP’s ticket for his wife (Kaur) to contest the general polls, but after the state elections, he extended support to Devendra Fadnavis-led BJP government and fielded candidates against the Congress and NCP in the local bodies. Now, when the Sena got Amravati, he has again joined the Congress-NCP front. This is the reason senior leaders and cadres from both parties are not willing to support Kaur, said a senior Congress leader.
To pacify the Congress-NCP leaders, Rana organised a luncheon with office-bearers a few days ago, where the issue was raised by many, including Congress MLA from Teosa Yashomati Thakur and Bablu Deshmukh, district Congress president. He also tried to join hands with his old rival and senior NCP leader Sanjay Khodke, but the latter said no, said an NCP leader.
The NCP is being led by Khodke in Amravati. He was sidelined by the party and Kaur was chosen as the NCP candidate, despite Khodke’s opposition in 2014. Khodke left the NCP in protest to join the Congress. He came back to the party a few months ago. Kaur is a popular face in Amravati city, Melghat and Badnera. “He (Ravi Rana) is accessible, but Adsul is not,” said Rupesh Borkar, resident of Vilas Nagar, Amravati and an autorickshaw driver.
“The constituency has no Modi wave compared to 2014, but the contest is now between Modi and others. Wherever the BJP is in strong position like Amravati, the candidates of its allies will be benefitted and Adsul will be one of them,” Pradeep Deshpande said.
