For the past few weeks, 23-year-old Rajool Patil, a first-year law student at Ruparel college, has been shadowing her father, Sanjay Dina Patil, who is the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) candidate from Mumbai North East. She has been part of his campaign at housing societies, involved in gatherings with party workers and also an active member of meetings held at his Bhandup office.

“The response we have been getting is amazing. People really want a change,” says Rajool, who wishes to follow her father’s footsteps someday. “I am actively involved in social work. Politics is a helping hand to further it. So why not?” she quips. Even her grandfather, Dina Bama Patil, was an MLA and her mother, Pallavi Patil is actively involved with the party.

A former MP and MLA Sanjay Patil says, “She is doing all the ground work of organising meetings and responding to people if I am not available.” As the campaigning for the Lok Sabha elections heats up, young turks like Rajool are also making their plunge into politics.

Amol Kirtikar is also actively involved in this election. Kirtikar is the son of Gajanan Kirtikar, sitting MP and Shiv Sena candidate from Mumbai North West.

Amol says, “I have been supporting my dad since he was contesting the Assembly elections in 1995. I have held the post of general secretary of the Yuva Sena (Sena’s youth wing) since it started seven years back. However, I have been doing social work even before that and politics is the best way to do it.”

He further adds: “In the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, I had conducted street plays to reach out to all six Assembly constituencies of North West Mumbai. This time, we are in constant touch with youngsters or first-time voters to make them aware of exercising their voting rights. I am also conducting meetings with several religious communities.”

Amol says that he is aspiring to contest the Assembly elections this year. He has formed a core team directed to interact with the youth in the constituency.

Dynasty politics is not uncommon in a state like Maharashtra where entire families are involved in the race for power. The term has been viewed negatively in the past few years but the next generation says that it is their next natural step.

“I have grown up in this set-up. I don’t think my day will end unless I have met people from the constituency,” says Rajool. Amol holds a similar view. He says, “Just because I have an influential surname does not mean that I do not have to prove my worth in this field. Politics has been a major influence in my life because of which I chose to be a part of it, whereas my siblings are far away from politics. However, I am well aware that this ‘dynasty politics’ will always be associated with me no matter how well I am doing in my career.”

Some members of ‘gen-next’ have also tasted electoral success. Varsha, who is the daughter of Eknath Gaikwad, a former MP and Congress candidate from Mumbai South Central, is a three-time MLA from Dharavi. Neil Somaiya, son of sitting MP from Mumbai North East, Kirit Somaiya, won the civic elections from Mulund in 2017.

Chinmay Sawant, 31, has also been campaigning for his father, Arvind Sawant, sitting MP from Mumbai South constituency and the Sena’s candidate for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls from the same constituency.

An associate from Sawant’s team said, “Chinmay is seen accompanying his father for many campaigns in his constituency. He has not started any independent campaigns on behalf of his father, but accompanies the team whenever it is possible.”

(With inputs from Sagar Pillai and Eeshanpriya MS)

First Published: Apr 04, 2019 00:07 IST