Dynasty politics: MahaYuti, MVA partners bet big on nominees with family links

Amid raging dynasty politics debate, the MahaYuti comprising BJP, Shiv Sena and NCP and the Maha Vikas Aghadi consisting of Shiv Sena (UBT), NCP (SP) and Congress have given nominations to the relatives of the established leaders from the respective parties.

Interestingly, BJP, which is targeting opposition over dynasty politics, tops the list among its candidates so far declared in Maharashtra followed by the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena and Congress party. They are betting big on their nominees with family links.

The list of BJP nominees included Pankaja Munde, who is the daughter of veteran party leader and former Union minister Gopinath Munde and is contesting the Lok Sabha election for the first time from Beed constituency which is represented by her real sister Pritam Munde since 2014 and by her father till his early death in June 2014.

The party nominee from Dindori and Union minister Bharati Pawar is the daughter of former state minister AT Pawar while Heena Gavit, who has been renominated from the tribal-dominated Nandurbar is the daughter of the minister Vijaykumar Gavit; Navneet Rana, who has been party’s nominee from Amravati, is the wife of an independent legislator Ravi Rana; Union minister and party nominee Piyush Goyal who has been fielded from North Mumbai is the son of former Union minister Ved Prakash Goyal and party legislator Chandrakanta Goyal; and Raksha Khadse, the daughter-in-law of former minister Eknath Khadse, is a candidate from Raver seat. Incidentally, Khadse is set to rejoin BJP in a fortnight leaving the NCP faction led by Sharad Pawar.

Further, party nominee from Akola, Anup Dhotre is the son of sitting MP and former Union minister Sanjay Dhotre; Sujay Vikhe-Patil, who is the son of state revenue minister Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil and the grandson of cooperative baron and former minister Balasaheb Vikhe-Patil, has been renominated from Ahmednagar constituency and Smita Wagh, who is the wife of BJP’s former Jalgaon district unit chief late Uday Wagh, is party’s nominee from Jalgaon seat.

In the case of Congress, Chhatrapati Shrimant Shahu Maharaj, who has been nominated from the Kolhapur seat, is a descendant of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj; Praniti Shinde, who is the daughter of former Union minister and veteran party leader Sushilkumar Shinde, is party’s candidate from Solapur seat; Prashant Padole, who is the son of former legislator late Yadavrao Padole, has been nominated from Bhandara-Gondiya constituency and sitting legislator Pratibha Dhanorkar, who is party’s nominee from Chandrapur seat, is the wife of former MP late Balu Dhanorkar.

As far as Shiv Sena is concerned, the party nominee from Yavatmal-Washim, Rajashree Patil is the wife of the party MP from Hingoli Hemant Patil who has been dropped. The party nominee from Hatkanangale, Dhairyashil Mane is the son of former MP Nivedita Mane; the party nominee from Kolhapur, Sanjay Mandlik is the son of former MP Sadashiv Mandlik and the party candidate from Kalyan seat, Shrikant Shinde is the son of Chief Minister Eknath Shinde.

The NCP led by Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar has nominated Archana Patil from the Dharashiv seat who is the wife of BJP legislator Rana Jagjit Singh Patil while the party nominee from Baramati, Sunetra Pawar is the wife of Ajit Pawar.

The NCP (SP) has renominated the sitting MP Supriya Sule from Baramati who is the daughter of party chief Sharad Pawar.

The Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi founder Prakash Ambedkar, who is contesting from the Akola seat, is the grandson of Bharat Ratna B. R. Ambedkar.

The Shiv Sena (UBT) has nominated Amol Kirtikar from North West Mumbai who is the son of sitting MP Gajanan Kirtikar who is now in the Shinde faction.