Congress renominates Abhijit Wanjari for Nagpur Graduates' constituency in Legislative Council poll
Voting for the Nagpur Division Graduates' seat is on October 23, with counting on October 27; the BJP had not named its candidate by Saturday.
The Congress has renominated Abhijit Wanjari from the Nagpur Division Graduates' constituency. Voting for this Legislative Council seat is on October 23, setting up another contest in Nagpur.
On Saturday, the party released its list of candidates for three teachers' and graduates' constituencies in Maharashtra, and Wanjari's name figured in it again. Jayant Dinkar Asgaonkar, the sitting MLC from the Pune Division Teachers' seat, has also been given a ticket again. For the Amravati Division Teachers' constituency, the Congress has named Aditi Rishikesh Pohare as its candidate.
The decision is considered significant for Nagpur because Wanjari's current term from the Graduates' constituency ends on December 6. The seat has always been closely watched, and graduate voters of the Nagpur Division will again be at the centre of discussion in this election.
The election schedule has already been announced. Voting for five Legislative Council seats from the graduates' and teachers' constituencies will take place on October 23, and votes will be counted on October 27. The nomination process began on September 29. The last date for filing nominations is October 6, and the last date for withdrawal is October 9.
Wanjari won the Nagpur Division Graduates' seat in the 2020 election, defeating the BJP's Sandip Joshi. The win ended the BJP's long hold on the seat.
With the Congress having formally announced Wanjari, all eyes are now on the BJP's candidate. As of Saturday, the BJP had not announced a name for the Nagpur Graduates' seat.
The election is being held for five seats whose sitting members are completing their terms. Besides Nagpur Graduates', they include the Graduates' constituencies of Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar and Pune, and the Teachers' constituencies of Pune and Amravati. The sitting members' terms end on December 6.
The Congress announcement comes as the Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) partners, the Congress, the NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar) and the Shiv Sena (UBT), try to work out an understanding among themselves for the biennial Council elections.
Graduate and teacher voters are separate in each of the five constituencies, so the choice of candidate and the organisation's preparation play a big part in the election. Wanjari's candidature has been formally announced and the other parties will also settle their names, so the Nagpur contest is expected to heat up.
In Nagpur, the most attention will now be on the BJP's candidate, and on the final list that emerges after the nomination and withdrawal dates. Voting will be on October 23 and counting on October 27.
This story has published but the live thread has not started. Updates appear here the moment the desk files one.
