Mumbai: The NCP (Ajit) released its second list of seven more candidates for the Maharashtra Assembly elections on Friday, fielding former minister Baba Siddique’s son and former Congress MLA Zeeshan Siddique.
Zeeshan joined the NCP on Friday with party President Ajit Pawar and state unit chief Sunil Tatkare. Soon after that, his nomination was announced. He will take on Shiv Sena-UBT nominee Varun Sardesai in Bandra (Vandre) East.
Siddique had won the Bandra East seat on a Congress ticket in 2019.
The Congress party expelled Zeeshan in August for allegedly casting a non-Congress vote in the Maharashtra legislative council elections; he is a member of the Vandre East MLA. Ever since speculations have been rife, Zeeshan would leave the party and switch to a rival party. His father, Baba Sidduq, also left the Congress party and joined NCP (Ajit) earlier this year.
“It is an emotional day for me and my family. I thank Ajit Pawar, Praful Patel, and Sunil Tatkare for believing in me in these tough times. I have received the nomination from Bandra East, and I am sure that with the love and support of all the people, I will definitely win Bandra East yet again,” said Zeeshan after joining the NCP.
Former BJP leaders Sanjaykaka Patil and Nishikant Patil have also joined the NCP.
The NCP, which released the first list of 38 nominees, announced the second list after a Thursday meeting between Pawar and Union Home Minister Amit Shah over the seat-sharing formula with the BJP and the Shiv Sena. The NCP hopes to get 55 to 58 seats in the Mahayuti’s seat-sharing deal.
The NCP has fielded former minister Nawab Malik’s daughter, Sana Malik, from the Anushakti Nagar constituency, which was earlier represented by her father. Nawab Malik is on medical bail in connection with the money laundering case.
However, Nawab Malik, who had expressed his desire to contest from the adjoining Mankhurd Shivaji Nagar seat, currently represented by Samajwadi Party legislator Abu Azmi, was expecting to be nominated soon.
Additionally, the NCP nominated Sanjaykaka Patil, who lost to an independent Vishal Patil from Sangli constituency in the Lok Sabha elections, from Tasgaon-Kavathe Mahankal seat against former deputy chief minister late RR Patil’s son and NCP SP nominee Rohit Patil.
The NCP also nominated Nishikant Patil against state NCP-SP president and former minister Jayant Patil from the Islampur constituency.
The party has renominated Sunil Tingre from Wadgaonkar Sheri constituency in the Pune district. Tingre grabbed the headlines after the hit-and-run case in Pune.
On May 19, a 17-year-old juvenile was driving a luxury car that crashed into a bike, killing two young riders in Kalyaninagar. After the accident, Tingre purportedly rushed to the police station to save the juvenile. Further, it was also claimed that Tingre was trying to influence the probe by using his political clout. However, Ajit Pawar stood in Tingre’s support.
Furthermore, the party has nominated former BJP MP Pratap Chikhalikar from Nanded, who lost to the Congress nominee, the late Vasant Chavan from Nanded start, in the general elections from the Lodha seat. Chikhalikar had recently joined the NCP.
The party has nominated Dnyanewhar Katke from the Shirur seat against NCP-SP candidate Ashok Pawar.
The Maharashtra Assembly, which has 288 members, will vote in a single phase on November 20. The results will be released on November 23.
In the upcoming Assembly elections, the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA), which includes the Shiv Sena (UBT), Congress, and Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar faction), will compete with the reigning Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena, BJP, and NCP’s Mahayuti coalition.
–IANS & Media Reports
