31 March,2024 04:36 AM IST | Mumbai | A Correspondent
Pawar (left) and Sule. File pic
Nationalist Congress Party (NCP)-Sharad Pawar faction's Supriya Sule will take on her bhabhi Sunetra Pawar of the Ajit Pawar group in the contest for Baramati's Lok Sabha seat. Deputy CM Ajit Pawar's party declared Sunetra's candidacy immediately after the rival candidate's name was announced on Saturday. Baramati promises a tough fight after many terms saw a one-sided battle.
This is the first time that the Pawar clan members have stood against each other in electoral politics. While Supriya is Sharad Pawar's only daughter, Sunetra is Ajit Pawar's wife. Sunetra's candidature was a foregone conclusion; she'd begun campaigning a fortnight ago. Sunil Tatkare (Raigad) and Adhalrao Patil (Shirur) were announced informally a week ago. Ajit's share has not been confirmed yet because of seat sharing issues between the NDA partners.
The NCP-Sharad Pawar faction announced five candidates on Saturday. Amol Kolhe will take on the NCP-Ajit faction's Shivajirao Adhalrao Patil to retain the Shirur seat. Former Congress MLA, Amar Kale, who joined the Sharad Pawar faction two days ago, was fielded from Wardha, which the Congress had been contesting since the first general election. Bhaskarrao Bagre (Dindori) will contest against BJP's Bharti Pawar. Pawar group on Friday, will go against Sujay Vikhe Patil, the BJP's sitting MP in Ahmednagar.
