Mumbai, Oct 23 (IANS) BJP leader and Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavi’s timely intervention has helped the former minister Raj Purohit and former legislator Snehlata Kolhe to fall in the party line and not to explore other options ahead of Assembly polls.
Both were upset for not being considered for the party nominations. Although Colaba figures in the BJP quota, Kopargaon is represented by NCP. BJP has so far announced the first list of 99 candidates.
Purohit was keen to get nomination from the Colaba constituency where the BJP has renominated the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly Speaker Rahul Narvekar while Kolhe had evinced a desire to fight from Kopargaon seat which is held by BJP’s ally NCP which has fielded the sitting legislator Ashutosh Kolhe.
Purohit, who was minister of state during the Shiv Sena-BJP government (1995-1999), was denied a ticket in the 2019 Assembly elections as the party nominated Narvekar.
However, Purohit had expressed his desire to get the party’s nomination during the 2024 Assembly elections from the Colaba seat and he with his supporters recently put up a show of strength. Purohit also had met Fadnavis two days ago making a strong pitch for his nomination.
It is not just Purohit, but BJP’s former legislator Snehlata Kolhe also dropped her plan to enter into the electoral fray after she failed to get the nomination from Kopargaon constituency where NCP has renominated Ashutosh Kale.
However, Fadnavis intervened and he organised her meeting with Union Home Minister Amit Shah. Thereafter, she decided to follow the alliance dharma.
After Fadnavis convinced Purohit to work for Narvekar’s victory, the latter on Wednesday announced that he has no plans to contest the election but will wholeheartedly support the party candidate.
Fadnavis during his meeting with Purohit reportedly told him that MahaYuti’s victory is quite important in the larger interest of the state and that nominees of BJP and allies should get elected as a single seat is crucial. Purohit relented and announced to work for the party nominee Narvekar.
Thereafter, Narvekar and Purohit, in a bid to put up a show of unity, remove confusion and send a positive signal among the cadres, held a joint press conference declaring to work together for the victory in the Colaba constituency.
“This is the election of Raj Purohit and Rahul Narvekar. I would like to tell the voters of the Colaba constituency that we will win this election by at least 50,000 votes. We will continue to strive to win maximum seats for the BJP,” said a visibly pleased Narvekar.
Purohit also said that he would give 100 per cent for Narvekar’s victory.
In the case of Kolhe, she met Fadnavis with a strong plea for nomination. After that Fadnavis organised her meeting with the Union Home Minister Amit Shah. Thereafter, Kolhe in her emotional post declared that in the larger interest of the party she has decided to follow the alliance dharma.
Purohit, who was close to the veteran BJP leader late Gopinath Munde, was earlier elected from the Mumbadevi constituency for four terms in 1995, 1999, and 2004 but he was defeated from the Colaba seat by Congress nominee Annie Shekhar in the 2009 elections.
Thereafter, Purohit once again won from the Colaba seat in the 2014 elections. Thereafter, despite his plea for renomination, the party denied him a ticket in the 2019 elections by nominating Narvekar.
As far as Snehlata Kolhe is concerned, she was elected from the sugarcane-rich Kopargaon constituency in the 2014 election but faced defeat from the united NCP nominee Ashutosh Kolhe. She was expecting that the BJP may stake claim over the Kopargaon seat and therefore had made a strong case to get the party nomination.
(Sanjay Jog can be contacted at sanjay.j@ians.in)
–IANS
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