With elections round the corner in Maharashtra, the list of aspirants for the Chief Minister’s post within the resurgent Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is fast swelling. Leader of Opposition in the State Assembly Eknath Khadse threw his hat into the ring on Thursday, declaring his interest in the post.
“My first priority is to ensure the victory of the Shiv Sena-BJP alliance. I have not demanded any post from the party. But there is nothing wrong with having ambitions,” he said when asked whether he was an aspirant.
Mr. Khadse had earlier served as Finance and Irrigation Minister in the Shiv Sena-BJP government in Maharashtra. He is the party’s strongman from North Maharashtra and was considered close to late BJP leader Gopinath Munde.
Meanwhile, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari’s presence at a spate of project inaugurations over the last week has triggered speculation on whether he will emerge as a dark horse. On Thursday, Mr Gadkari was present at the bhoomipoojan of the Nagpur Metro. Last week, he accompanied Prime Minister Narendra Modi to flag off infrastructure projects in Navi Mumbai and Solapur.
Mr. Gadkari’s associates say he is not interested in returning to state politics. “The BJP is focusing on Maharashtra and so will Mr. Gadkari. But that does not mean he is an aspirant,” said a close aide of the leader.
Within the state unit, BJP President Devendra Fadnavis is considered the front-runner for the post. An MLA and former mayor of Nagpur, he has a clean reputation and is an aggressive orator. His rival is MLC Vinod Tawde, who is also trying to project himself. Mr. Tawde has so far been more of a backroom strategist but plans to contest his first assembly election this year.
Yet much depends on whether the BJP qualifies for the post. Its alliance partner the Shiv Sena has already staked its claim and will contest more seats than the BJP in the state assembly. “It all depends on which party wins more seats. Even if we contest less seats, we could end up winning more than the Shiv Sena,” says Mr. Khadse.
