SIGNIFICANT political developments unfolded across Maharashtra on the final day for the withdrawal of nominations on Thursday for the 17 seats of the Maharashtra Legislative Council (MLC) from the Local Authorities’ constituencies. While the Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) attempted to field strong challenges against the ruling MahaYuti alliance, several MVA candidates withdrew their nominations, citing a lack of favourable numbers and alleged non-cooperation from alliance partners. Concurrently, top MahaYuti leaders successfully pacified most of their internal rebels. By the end of the withdrawal window, five seats were decided unopposed, with the MahaYuti alliance securing all five (Shiv Sena – 2, NCP – 2, BJP – 1). The remaining 12 constituencies will head to the polls. Candidates elected unopposed on five seats include: Wardha-Chandrapur-Gadchiroli: Arun Lakhani (BJP); Pune: Vikram Kakade (NCP – Ajit Pawar); Thane: Ravindra Phatak (Shiv Sena – Eknath Shinde); Raigad-Ratnagiri-Sindhudurg: Aniket Tatkare (NCP – Ajit Pawar); and Yavatmal: Dushyant Chaturvedi (Shiv Sena – Eknath Shinde) A high-drama moment was witnessed when BJP Minister Nitesh Rane personally accompanied Bal Mane, the Shiv Sena (UBT) candidate from the Konkan constituency, to the District Collector’s office to withdraw his nomination. When asked about Rane’s presence, Mane called the BJP leader “a son of Konkan soil” and reiterated that his decision was aimed at preventing any malpractice in the election process.

 

The MVA nominee was contesting against Aniket Tatkare, son of NCP state president and Lok Sabha MP Sunil Tatkare. Mane said there are 1,018 voters across three districts in the constituency and admitted his camp did not have a clear majority. Meanwhile, in Nashik, Ganesh Gite withdrew early in the day, but Gokul Gite remained in the fray. Three of the nine candidates in the fray for the June 18 Maharashtra legislative council polls from Nashik seat withdrew their nominations on Thursday, the last day for the process, officials said. Those who withdrew comprise independents Ganesh Gite, Vishnu Mhaisdhune, Nivrutti Bodke, Kunal Darade and Pervez Kokani as well as ISLAM party's Mohammed Khaleed Abdul Rasheed, they added. The contest will now be between Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena's Narendra Darade, who is the official Mahayuti candidate, and independent candidates Gokul Gite and Prasad Hiray. In Raigad-Ratnagiri-Sindhudurg, allocated to the NCP (Ajit Pawar) under the MahaYuti seat-sharing pact, the party fielded Aniket Tatkare. Shiv Sena (UBT) had nominated Bal Mane, but in a dramatic turn, Mane arrived at the Collectorate with Mahayuti Minister Nitesh Rane and withdrew his papers. Arvind Mhatre of the Peasants and Workers Party (PWP) also withdrew.

 

Following this, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut announced Bal Mane’s immediate expulsion from the party for anti-party activities, paving the way for Tatkare’s unopposed victory. In Pune, NCP’s Sunil Tingre and BJP rebel Pradeep Kand withdrew their nominations. For the MVA, Shrikant Patil of the NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar) also pulled out, clearing the deck for NCP (Ajit Pawar) candidate Vikram Kakade to win uncontested. According to the district administration, Patil as well as independent candidates Sunil Tingre, Tushar Kamthe, Pradip Kand and Ranjeet Jare withdrew their nomination papers. “I thank everyone for making this election unopposed. Though the election is unopposed, I will still reach out to all voters and understand their views and expectations from me,” Kakade said. Kakade is the son of former Rajya Sabha member and businessman Sanjay Kakade. The construction magnate and former national-level shooter has declared total family assets worth Rs 153 crore, establishing him as one of the wealthiest contenders in the fray. Beyond luxury assets like high-end yachts and premium watches, the affidavit has sparked intense political chatter by disclosing that Kakade has extended a massive personal loan of Rs 10 crore to Sunetra Pawar’s son Jay Pawar.

 

In Ahilyanagar (Ahmednagar), Karan Sasane, who had filed his nomination with Congress support, withdrew from the race. The fight is now between BJP nominee Prajkt Tanpure and independent Dattatray Pansare. In Thane, the Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde) fielded Ravindra Phatak. MVA’s Abhijit Pawar (NCP – Sharadchandra Pawar) pulled out, leading to Phatak’s unopposed election. In Sangli-Satara, Shiv Sena’s Tanajirao Patil withdrew his nomination following instructions from Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde. The main battle is now between Dhairyasheel Kadam (BJP) and Abhaysinh Jagtap (NCP – SP). In Solapur, Jivan Jankar withdrew his candidacy, leaving a direct fight between BJP’s Rajendra Raut and Vasantrao Deshmukh of the NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar). In Nanded, Mahayuti quelled internal rebellion as Pravin Patil Chikhalikar withdrew his papers. The seat will see a direct battle between Ramdas Patil (Congress) and Amar Rajurkar (BJP). In Parbhani-Hingoli, the race features Saeed Khan (Shiv Sena – Shinde), Vivek Navandar (Shiv Sena – UBT), and independent Sushil Deshmukh.

 

In Dharashiv-Latur-Beed, seven independents withdrew, leaving a direct clash between Basavaraj Patil (BJP) and Mahesh Deshmukh (Congress). In Jalgaon, multiple withdrawals set up a three-way battle between Nandkishor Mahajan (BJP), Sharad Tayade (Shiv Sena – UBT), and Reshma Kale (Shiv Sena – Shinde). In Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar-Jalna, the contest is between Suhas Sirsat (BJP) and Ganesh Lokhande (Shiv Sena – UBT) after Devayani Dongaonkar and Sameer Sattar withdrew. The Uddhav Thackeray-led party subsequently expelled her and her husband Krishna Patil Dongaonkar. A cooperative sugar factory controlled by him received a notice from the Sugar Commissioner earlier in the day, Dongaonkar told reporters. , while claiming that it did not influence his wife’s decision but the voter arithmetic did not favour her.