Counting of votes for the Baramati assembly by-election began on Monday, May 4. The Baramati Assembly seat fell vacant after the sudden death of former Maharashtra Chief Minister and NCP chief Ajit Pawar in a plane crash on January 28. For the by-election, the Mahayuti alliance has fielded Ajit Pawar’s wife and Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Sunetra Pawar as its candidate.
No major political party has fielded a candidate against Sunetra Pawar in the Baramati Assembly by-poll. The BJP-led Mahayuti has campaigned to secure a record vote share, while senior leader Sharad Pawar has also extended support to Sunetra. This has led to curiosity over whether Baramati’s 3.73 lakh voters will create electoral history.
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A total of 23 candidates remain in the fray after Congress candidate Akash More withdrew his nomination at the last moment. None of the candidates belong to a major political party. Two candidates represent registered political parties — R.Y. Ghutukade from Solapur, representing the New Rashtriya Samaj Party, and Satish Kadam from Jat, representing the Hindustan Janata Party.
The remaining 21 candidates are independents. They include eight candidates from Baramati, an independent candidate from the village of State Agriculture Minister Dattatray Bharne, Dhananjay Munde’s wife Karuna Munde, and Abhijit Bichukale.