The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Tuesday announced the names of five candidates for the next month`s elections to the Maharashtra Legislative Council.
The party named Sunil Vinayak Karjatkar, Madhavi Naik, Sanjay Natthuji Bhende, Vivek Bipindada Kolhe and Pramod Shantaram Jathar as its nominees for the May 12 biennial polls.
Profiles of key nominees
Karjatkar is a veteran party worker who has acted as a strategist for several state elections in the past. He was once close to senior BJP leader, the late Pramod Mahajan.
Vivek Kolhe is the son of former party MLA Snehalata Kolhe. She did not contest the 2024 assembly polls as the Kopargaon assembly segment in Ahilyanagar district was allotted to ally Nationalist Congress Party (NCP).
Sanjay Bhende, who was in charge of Union minister Nitin Gadkari`s Lok Sabha election campaign in 2024, is currently the chairperson of Nagpur Urban Cooperative Bank.
Madhavi Naik, general secretary of the state BJP unit and a resident of Thane, has also been nominated for the Upper House.
Pramod Jathar, a former MLA, hails from Sindhudurg.
Election schedule and nomination process
The announcement comes ahead of the filing of nominations, the last date for which is April 30. Scrutiny of nomination papers will take place on May 2, while the last date for withdrawal of candidature is May 4.
Retiring members and polling details
Nine council members, including former chief minister and Shiv Sena (UBT) president Uddhav Thackeray, are set to retire on May 13.
Polling for the elections will be held on May 12 from 9 am to 4 pm, with counting scheduled at 5 pm the same day. The entire election process will conclude by May 13.
Numbers favour ruling Mahayuti alliance
A quota of 28 votes is required for a candidate to get elected to the legislative council. In the ruling Mahayuti alliance, the BJP has 132 MLAs, the Shiv Sena led by Eknath Shinde has 57, and the NCP led by Ajit Pawar has 41. Based on this strength, the alliance can ensure the victory of eight candidates.
Opposition faces uphill battle
The opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) has a combined strength of 46, which is sufficient to secure the election of one candidate. However, it will need an additional 10 votes to win a second seat, which appears difficult under the current numbers.
