Nearly 41% of candidates from Thane, Kalyan, Bhiwandi are class 10 dropouts

THANE: Nearly 41% of the candidates seeking mandate from Thane, Kalyan and Bhiwandi parliamentary seats fall in the category of just about literate as 27 of the total 66 candidates are class X dropouts. Gautam Waghchaure from Bahujan Mukti Party, who is in the race for the Kalyan seat, is the sole candidate who is uneducated and currently unemployed.


But irrespective of their educational qualifications, it was seen that most these candidates were doing well financially and most of them had their own businesses. These even included some of the known faces of the city like NCP contestant Babaji Patil, who quit studies after SSC. A corporator, he has his own businesses too.

Going by the affidavits filed by the 66 nominees, only nine are postgraduates, including Dr Shrikant Shinde, the Shiv Sena nominee from Kalyan; NCP’s Anand Paranjape from Thane; and Arun Sawant from the Prakash Ambedkar-led Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi have post-graduation qualifications. While Shinde, who holds a masters degree in orthopaedics, after working in development-malnourished pockets of the state, decided to throw his hat in electoral politics, Paranjape quit his construction business which he set up after completing his MBA in materials in Pune, and continued the political legacy of his father, former Sena MP Prakash Paranjpe.

Sawant could easily be on the top of the education chart here as he is is an MsC-holder, a chemical scientist and has also been awarded the PhD in chemistry. He was chancellor of Rajasthan University and former pro vice-chancellor of Mumbai University. He taught chemistry for almost 38 years.

Two Independent candidates have degrees from the Bombay Flying Club—Amrish Morajkar has studied aircraft maintenance engineering, while Asmita Puranik had completed a certified course as commercial pilot.

While Suresh Taware of Congress quit studies after FYBCom and is into farming and has his own powerloom business, Kapil Moreshwar Patil from BJP is an arts graduate who has various businesses including construction. Sitting MP Rajan Vichare from Shiv Sena quit studies after FYJC.