Maharashtra polls: Break in Pimpri-Chinchwad’s legacy of strong independent candidates
Pimpri-Chinchwad has a tradition of victories and near-victories by independents who have captivated voters with their local connect, social work, and political skills
For the first time in the past 15 years, the assembly constituencies of Bhosari and Chinchwad are set to go to polls without a strong independent candidate. Otherwise, Pimpri-Chinchwad has a tradition of victories and near-victories by independents who have captivated voters with their local connect, social work, and political skills.
In 2009, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA, late Laxman Jagtap, won from Chinchwad as an independent candidate, defeating Shiv Sena (undivided) candidate, Shrirang Barne. This historic victory inspired others in the region and during the same assembly elections, Vilas Lande too won from Bhosari as an independent candidate, defeating Shiv Sena candidate Sulbha Ubhale and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) candidate Mangalatai Kadam.
The legacy continued in the 2014 assembly elections when MLA Mahesh Landge ran as an independent candidate after being denied a ticket by the NCP (undivided) and defeated sitting MLA Vilas Lande in Bhosari, paving the way for independent voices to be heard.
Similarly in the 2019 assembly elections, independent candidate Rahul Kalate from Chinchwad challenged sitting MLA, late Laxman Jagtap and was the runner-up, getting 1.12 lakh votes. Also in the 2019 assembly polls, Vilas Lande contested as an independent candidate from Bhosari and rose to runner-up position with over 81,000 votes, demonstrating the sway independents held over voters.
For the first time however, the upcoming 2024 assembly elections are set to take place without a single dominant independent contender in Bhosari or Chinchwad. The ruling Mahayuti alliance in Maharashtra consists of the BJP, Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde) and NCP (Ajit Pawar). While the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance includes the Congress, NCP (SP), and Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray). Given the significance of these elections and the potential impact an independent candidate can have, both alliances have managed to appease rebel candidates.
In Chinchwad, a strong candidate from the NCP (Ajit Pawar), Nana Kate, who was determined to contest as an independent, was ultimately asked to withdraw his candidacy by the party chief. In Bhosari, former corporator Ravi Landge who recently joined the Shiv Sena (UBT) also agreed to withdraw his candidacy. This year, senior corporator Bhausaheb Bhoir from the NCP (Ajit Pawar) will contest as an independent candidate from Chinchwad. However, political observers believe that Bhoir is not a strong independent candidate capable of winning the assembly elections on his own.