Lokmat News Network
Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar
With the two major parties in this region looking only for strong and influential candidates, aspiring contenders say the time has come to admit that the days of ordinary party workers are now over.
Expecting the Zilla Parishad (ZP) and Panchayat Samiti elections to be held in December, interested candidates have already begun groundwork. The Ladsavangi ZP division has been declared as an open (general) category, while the Ladsavangi and Chauka Panchayat Samiti divisions have been reserved for women (general). In the Ladsavangi ZP division, the BJP and the Congress have alternately held power for five years each. However, this time Abhijit Deshmukh from the NCP (Ajit Pawar faction) is among the aspirants for the Ladsavangi division.
Since the Ladsavangi ZP division is open to all, both the BJP and the Congress are searching for strong candidates. Among the names discussed for BJP are agricultural market committee chairman Radhakisan Pathade, society chairman Vijay Kale, former Panchayat Samiti deputy chairman Arjun Shelke, and Anil Shejul. For Congress, the names doing rounds are Jagannath Kale, Manoj Shejul, Dr. Punjab Padul, and Dr. Jabbar Khan.
In the Ladsavangi division, BJP and Congress aspirants have begun touring villages together to assess their standing even before the election is announced. With prospective candidates being asked questions like “How much is your bank balance?” the common party worker now wonders whether contesting an election will remain just a dream.