To strengthen their prospects in the upcoming Maharashtra assembly Elections, leaders from the ruling Mahayuti coalition are shifting allegiances among themselves. At least five BJP leaders have decided to switch to different partners within the coalition, aiming to boost their chances of securing tickets while adhering to the coalition’s seat-sharing agreement.
According to The Indian Express report, an analysis reveals that these turncoats have been granted tickets to contest in the upcoming elections. Many have aligned with Chief Minister Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena or Ajit Pawar’s Nationalist Congress Party (NCP).
Notably, Nilesh Rane, son of former Chief Minister and Union Minister Narayan Rane, recently joined the Shinde-led Shiv Sena and will contest from the Kudal-Sawantwadi Assembly seat, allocated to the Sena. Rane, a former Congress MP who switched to the BJP in 2019, will face off against sitting MLA Vaibhav Naik from the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT), a key opponent of the Rane family. The Sena (UBT) is part of the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance.
Four other BJP leaders have also made the leap to the NCP to contest from its designated seats. On Friday, Sanjaykaka Patil, a former MP, and district BJP president Nishikant Bhosale Patil joined the NCP during a ceremony in Mumbai attended by NCP chief Ajit Pawar and state party president Sunil Tatkare.
Following their induction, the NCP announced their candidacies: Nishikant from the Islampur Assembly seat and Sanjaykaka from Tasgaon. Sanjaykaka will compete against Rohit Patil, son of late NCP leader R R Patil, while Nishikant faces sitting MLA and state president Jayant Patil.
Nishikant attributed his party switch to Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, stating, “I had to shift to the NCP from the BJP as the Islampur Assembly seat went to the NCP. I will win the election from the Islampur seat on the NCP ticket.” He had previously contested the seat as an Independent in 2019, finishing as the runner-up.
Additionally, Prataprao Patil Chikhalikar, a BJP leader from Nanded district, joined the NCP to contest the Loha Assembly constituency on its ticket. A former Nanded MP, Chikhalikar has previously served as MLA from Loha. Similarly, former state minister Raj Badole has aligned with the NCP and will contest from the Arjuni-Morgaon Assembly seat, which he has represented twice but lost in 2019.