The voting will be held on Oct 23, with counting and results on Oct 27
The voting will be held on Oct 23, with counting and results on Oct 27. A key meeting of his supporters has been convened on Sept 24. BJP has asserted its traditional hold over both the constituencies, pointing out that it won the seats repeatedly in the past. In Pune division, Arun Lad of NCP won the graduates’ constituency in the previous election, while Congress candidate Jayant Asgaonkar emerged victorious from the teachers’ constituency.
The Pune division constituency — covering Pune, Satara, Solapur, Sangli, and Kolhapur districts — will elect one representative each from the graduates and teachers’ constituencies to the legislative council. Senior BJP member and minister Chandrakant Patil, a two-time MLC from the graduates’ constituency, has already begun projecting Vivekanand College chief executive officer Kaustubh Gawade as a likely face for the teachers’ constituency and Kranti Sugar Factory chairperson Sharad Lad for the graduates’ constituency at public gatherings. Alliance partner Shiv Sena has also thrown its hat into the ring by declaring deputy chief minister Eknath Shinde’s close aide Mangesh Chivate as its aspirant for the teachers’ constituency. The party has also floated Eknath Swabhimani Shikshak Sanghatana and stepped up outreach efforts through meetings and gatherings of teachers across the division. NCP, meanwhile, has staked a claim to the graduates’ seat, citing its victory in the last election. The constituency is currently represented by Arun Lad of NCP. State minister Hasan Mushrif is backing his close associate Pratap alias Bhaiya Mane for the seat. Mushrif has publicly claimed that Arun had persuaded Mane to withdraw from the previous contest by assuring him of support in the subsequent election. He has now challenged Arun to ensure that his son Sharad, whom Mushrif alleges has moved closer to BJP, does not seek the party nomination. The graduates’ constituency is emerging as a crowded field. Former MLC Ranjeetsinha Mohite-Patil of Akluj in Solapur district has also begun preparations for the contest.
Even before the formal election process began, political activity in Pune division had intensified, particularly within Mahayuti, where BJP , Shiv Sena and NCP have staked a claim to the two seats. Kolhapur: Political activity in Pune division has gathered momentum with Election Commission on Tuesday announcing biennial elections to Maharashtra Legislative Council from graduates’ and teachers’ constituencies.