Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar-led Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) renominated incumbent MLA Sunil Tingre from the Wadgaon Sheri Assembly constituency in Pune on Friday. He will face off against Bapusaheb Pathare of the Sharad Pawar faction of the NCP.
The NCP hadn't declared Tingre's name in its first list, which revived the chances of former BJP MLA Jagdish Mulik, who was vying for the ticket. Tingre defeated Mulik in 2019, and despite the two parties being in an alliance, their rivalry is pretty much visible on the ground—so much so that BJP workers and supporters of Mulik openly refused to campaign for Tingre.
In a letter written to senior BJP leader Pankaja Munde, Arjun Jagtap, president of the saffron party's Wadgaon Sheri Assembly segment, wrote, "All local BJP leaders and workers wish that someone from our party gets to contest from Wadgaon Sheri. Former MLA Jagdish Mulik has played an important role in expanding BJP and its ideology in Wadgaon Sheri. From one corporator before 2014, Mulik got 14 corporators elected during his tenure."
Jagtap further accused Tingre of working against Union Minister Murlidhar Mohol, who was Mahayuti's candidate for the Pune Lok Sabha seat. "It was only because of the BJP that Mohol got a lead of 15,600 votes from Wadgaon Sheri. If Tingre had followed the alliance principle, Mohol would have got a bigger lead," he said, adding, "Hence, if the Wadgaon Sheri Assembly seat goes to the NCP in seat-sharing, then the BJP workers will not campaign for the candidate in any form."
Mulik has also publicly targeted Tingre on multiple occasions. Ahead of Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar's visit to Wadgaon Sheri to lay the foundation stones for development works worth ₹300 crore, Tingre put up posters featuring only his party chief's pictures; photos of Eknath Shinde and Devendra Fadnavis were notably absent. Subsequently, Mulik slammed Tingre, expressing his displeasure and questioning whether only the BJP and Shiv Sena are expected to adhere to the alliance's principles.
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Now, it remains to be seen if Mulik adheres to the alliance dharma and supports Tingre's candidature or contests independently.
On the other hand, Pathare joined the NCP (SP) last month. He was elected as an MLA in 2009 on an NCP (undivided) ticket. He contested the polls again in 2014 but was defeated by Mulik. He did not run in the 2019 election and joined the BJP that same year. He has also served as a sarpanch and a corporator.
