The Ahmednagar south Lok Sabha constituency poses challenges for the Congress and the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
While the seat has traditionally been a Congress bastion, the party is riven by bickering between the factions of its two leaders in the district — Radhakrishna Vikhe-Patil, presently the Leader of Opposition in the Assembly and former State Minister and milk cooperative baron, Balasaheb Thorat.
With the wrangle between the Congress and its ally, the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) over the seat yet to be resolved, Sujay Vikhe-Patil, Mr. Radhakrishna’s elder son, has said he will fight as an Independent if the Congress did not grant him a ticket.
“Three generations of my family has been rendering exemplary service to the people of Ahmednagar. I am going to ask for a ticket on the strength of this social service…in the event I am refused, I will contest as an Independent and win,” said Mr. Sujay, addressing a youth meet on Saturday.
According to a political observer, Mr. Sujay has been actively gearing for the contest for the past couple of years, steadily expanding his support base with a number of social activities like medical services for those on the social margins.
On Sunday, Maharashtra Congress chief Ashok Chavan said, “We have an alliance with the NCP and we will firmly abide by coalition dharma (rules) when it comes to seat-sharing. While I sympathise with Mr. Sujay’s sentiments, the question of which party gets to contest it and which candidate will get a ticket will only be taken after due consultation with our allies.”
If the Congress persuades the NCP into letting them have the Ahmednagar seat, the latter’s support will play a key role in determining the Congress’ fortunes here.
Ahmednagar, which has so long been the fief of powerful and interconnected political families, has often witnessed strange political alliances. Mr. Radhakrishna’s father, veteran Congressman Balasaheb Vikhe-Patil was well-known for his close ties with both the BJP and the Shiv Sena.
In 1998, Balasaheb was elected from the Ahmednagar LS, while in 2001, he joined the BJP for a brief while before returning like the prodigal son into the Congress fold. His son, Mr. Radhakrishna, too, has maintained his ties with the BJP, lending him open to the charge of being a ‘quisling’ to his party by his detractors, especially Balasaheb Thorat.
In 2016, following the Congress’ defeat in the Municipal Council polls in the district, Mr. Thorat had openly accused Mr. Radhakrishna of being in cahoots with the BJP and “failing in his responsibilities” as a senior party leader by allying with the saffron party in a number of councils in the district.
The NCP, despite having won the seat once in 2004 (by its leader Tukaram Gadakh), has seen a spate of defections. Yet, it has acted as a ‘power-broker’ of sorts.
Meanwhile, the BJP faces a leadership crisis in the district as sections within the party are unhappy with the performance of its top gun in the district — three-time MP Dilip Gandhi.
According to the grapevine, the party top brass isn’t keen on giving Mr. Gandhi a ticket for the upcoming general election.
In the recently concluded poll to the Ahmednagar civic body, Mr. Gandhi’s son and daughter-in-law both suffered setbacks.
