BJP import joins NCP, set to challenge BJP in Madha LS seat

The BJP faced a challenge in western Maharashtra as its district general secretary, Dhairyasheel Mohite-Patil, decided to leave the party and join Sharad Pawar's Nationalist Congress Party (NCP). Mohite-Patil has been chosen as the NCP's candidate for the Madha Lok Sabha seat, setting up a contest against BJP's incumbent MP Ranjeetsinh Naik Nimbalkar.

After his NCP induction, Dhairyasheel criticized the current MP Ranjitsinh Nimbalkar over the Bhima-Cauvery river project, speaking in the presence of NCP state chief Jayant Patil. He is the nephew of former Deputy Chief Minister Vijaysingh Mohite-Patil and cousin of BJP lawmaker Ranjitsinh Mohite-Patil.

Sharad Pawar held discussions with Vijaysingh Mohite Patil and senior Congress leader Sushilkumar Shinde regarding the Madha and Solapur Lok Sabha seats respectively. With Mohite-Patil joining NCP, Pawar seems to have solidified Mahavikas Aghadi's position in the western region.

Candidates from both Solapur and Madha constituencies plan to file their nomination papers together on April 16 after a joint press conference. In Solapur, former Chief Minister Sushilkumar Shinde's daughter and MLA, Praniti Shinde, will be the candidate, while the competition in both constituencies is directly against BJP candidates.

In the 2019 elections, Devendra Fadnavis had secured Mohite-Patil's support to help elect Ranjit Singh Nimbalkar from Madha. Although the BJP had offered a legislative council seat to Mohite-Patil's son in 2019, his nephew has now chosen to align with Sharad Pawar for the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.

Madha has been a significant seat for Sharad Pawar, who first won from this constituency in 2009. Formed in 2008, the constituency saw VijaySinh Mohite Patil, a prominent NCP leader, winning in 2014 despite the Modi wave. However, Mohite later shifted his allegiance to the BJP after the 2019 elections. The constituency comprises four assembly segments in Solapur and two in Satara.

Initially, Sharad Pawar had persuaded Dhanagar community leader Mahadev Jankar to contest from Madha. Despite several meetings between Jankar and Pawar, Jankar decided to run from the Parbhani Lok Sabha constituency after discussions with Devendra Fadnavis. Subsequently, Sharad Pawar sought a new candidate for the Madha seat, which he himself contested in 2009.