Nasik MLC poll: Congress candidate refuses to file papers; son to contest in Maharashtra

MUMBAI:  In an embarrassment for the Congress and its Legislature Party leader and former revenue minister Balasaheb Thorat, his brother-in-law Dr Sudhir Tambe refused to file his nomination at the eleventh hour even after the official declaration of his candidature for biennial elections to the Maharashtra legislative council for Nasik Division Graduates constituency. 

Dr Sudhir Tambe’s son Satyajit Tambe, former Maharashtra Youth Congress president, filed his nomination as an independent candidate in his father’s place, claiming the support of the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi. However, state Congress chief Nana Patole said he was not aware of the changes in candidates. State BJP chief Chandrashekhar Bawankule said the party has not officially declared its candidate in Nasik, but it could extend support to Satyajit Tambe, if he seeks BJP support.

“Earlier in the day, the Congress had declared Dr Sudhir Tambe as the candidate for the biennial polls. He was also given the form to attach along with other papers. “I am surprised why he did not file his nomination and instead his son did. I will seek a detailed report,” Patole said. Sources said the twist in the Nasik Division Graduate elections shows that all is not well in the Balasaheb Thorat family.

“Things were clear from the day of Satyajit Tambe’s book release functions by Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis in the presence of Balasaheb Thorat and other eminent leaders. In the function, Fadnavis warned that if young leaders like Satyajit were not given space in the Congress, then the BJP was ready to accept him. The seeds of the split in the Thorat family were sown in this function, but Thorat was confident that his brother-in-law would not revolt. “The drama has just begun, it will unfold now,” said a person close to both Thorat and Tambe.

Sources said that fissures in the Tambe family started showing when Balasaheb Thorat started promoting his daughter Dr Jayshree in his constituency Sangamner. “Satyajit Tambe thought that in the 2024 State assembly polls, Balasaheb Thorat will not contest, instead his daughter will. The dynastic promotion by his maternal uncle will end his political career at a young age.

Therefore, an insecure Tambe family saw biennial elections as a major opportunity to revolt against Thorat and establish Satyajit leadership with the help of the BJP,” said a senior Congress leader. Balasaheb Thorat refused to speak on the development. “This development will surely erode Balasaheb’s growing influence in the Congress,” said a party source.

How Uddhav lost his govt  
The biennial elections have given many shocks and surprises. The Uddhav Thackeray govt lost the trust in his govt in the biennial polls. In this election, BJP won all five seats while MVA won five and lost one against the BJP despite having the numbers. BJP later toppled the Uddhav govt with the help of Eknath Shinde.