Eknath Khadse, currently, a senior leader of the Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar) faction has confirmed that he is moving back to the Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) ahead of the Lok Sabha election. Speaking to The Hindu, on Saturday, Mr. Khadse said, “Yes, I am confirming that I am joining BJP. I am coming back home! I will file my nominations for the Lok Sabha election and complete all the formalities within 8-10 days. I do not want to reveal much at this stage.”
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Sources said that it was the Centre that reached out to Mr. Khadse. Mr. Khadse’s ‘ghar wapsi’ is considered to be important for the BJP’s plans to increase its footprint in north Maharashtra.
After 40 years in the Sangh Parivar — he started with the Jan Sangh and was among the founder leaders of the BJP — Mr. Khadse had quit the party in October 2020 and joined the then unified NCP. He is currently an MLC of the NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar). Mr. Khadse had blamed Devendra Fadnavis and Cabinet Minister Girish Mahajan at the time he left the BJP, accusing them of trying to sabotage his stature in north Maharashtra
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The NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar) offered Mr. Khadse a membership in the Legislative Council and appointed his daughter, Rohini Khadse, as the State chief of the party’s women’s wing. In 2021, Mr. Khadse got stuck in the tangle of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in a 2016 land deal case in Pune; this just when the NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar) was expecting their expansion in north Maharashtra with Mr. Khadse’s assistance. The ED had arrested Mr. Khadse’s son-in-law Girish Chaudhri in the same case alleging that the two purchased land from the Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC) at Bhosari in Pune for ₹3.75 crore when its actual value was almost ₹40 crore.
Talking about his daughter’s political stance, Mr. Khadse told The Hindu, “We are still under discussion what my daughter Rohini’s political stance will be now. Having said that, we believe in democracy and Rohini is free to choose who she wants to join and what she likes to do. There is no compulsion on her from my side as a father or as a political leader. We will respect and accept whatever she decides, and her decision will not be affected just because I am joining the BJP. Both my daughter and daughter-in-law, Raksha Khadse has my undivided support.” Raksha Khadse, is the BJP candidate in the Raver Lok Sabha constituency.
Sources say that Mr. Khadse’s return has to do with the ED chargesheets and now that he is relived from them, he is coming back to the BJP.
When the speculations started making rounds of Mr. Khadse’s moving back to the BJP, Mr. Khadse had said that he would inform NCP leader Sharad Pawar before he resigns as a member of the Legislative Council.