Campaigning ends for Nagpur graduates' seat; Abhijit Wanjari, Sudhakar Kohale in direct fight

The din of campaigning ended on Wednesday evening in the Nagpur division graduates' constituency of the Legislative Council. Voting will be held on Friday. The constituency spans six districts, and the main contest is seen to be between Congress candidate Abhijit Wanjari and BJP candidate Sudhakar Kohale.

In the final phase of campaigning, the "poll managers" of both the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party remained active. The strategy of both parties now rests on keeping in touch with voters and getting them to polling stations.

Congress's Abhijit Wanjari won the last election. That victory ended the roughly 58-year-old dominance of the Jana Sangh and the BJP over the seat. This time the BJP is trying to win the seat back, while the Congress hopes to repeat its previous performance. For this reason the contest is seen as a close one.

There are reportedly 38 candidates in the constituency. They include Shikshak Bharati's Atul Deshmukh. Sanjay Thul is contesting as an independent after being denied a BSP ticket. The performance of these candidates is expected to affect the electoral equations.

The BJP has deployed a team of in-charges, co-in-charges and senior leaders. The party's poll managers are working on a strategy of contacting voters before polling and bringing them to the booths. The BJP's main focus is reportedly on Nagpur city and other urban areas.

In the last week of the campaign, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Union Minister Nitin Gadkari held meetings, interacted with different sections of voters and addressed public meetings. Mahayuti coordinator Sudhir Mungantiwar, election in-charge and Guardian Minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule, and election chief and MLA Praveen Datke were also active with their teams.

Congress leaders were also seen working in coordination in the final phase. Instead of large campaign events, the party laid greater stress on direct contact with voters. Leaders and workers carried out outreach in their respective areas. The party's focus is reportedly mainly on rural areas, and the Congress hopes the support it received in the last election will stay with it this time too.

With campaigning over, both major parties are focused on getting voters to polling stations. In the region spread across six districts, the turnout and the support won by individual candidates could affect the result. The outcome of the contest will become clear after Friday's voting and the counting that follows.