Denied ticket, several BJP rebels take wait-and-watch stance

Pune: Rebels within the BJP, faced with the denial of a ticket after the party published its first list on Sunday, have chosen to take a wait-and-watch stance in the run-up to the state assembly poll.
The party had faced opposition from various quarters ahead of the declaration of tickets but has seemingly chosen not to entertain the brewing rebellion for now.
Although many aspirants had demanded a ticket during the party's internal meetings, two former corporators and senior office-bearers in Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) have publicly raised objections to the candidacy of sitting MLAs of their constituencies — namely Shreenath Bhimale and Amol Balwadkar from the Parvati and Kothrud seats, respectively.
Bhimale announced, "I am not content with the party's decision to deny me a ticket. The future course of action will be decided after an interaction with party workers and my supporters."
Similarly, Balwadkar said the selection of the candidate was "not proper". "The process followed by the party was not transparent," he said, opposing the ticket to Chandrakant Patil, state cabinet minister and Kothrud MLA.
Other aspirants are toeing the same line, saying that they have taken a stand against the declared candidates, not the party. They said they will consult not only their supporters but also the party high command before taking a final call on rebellion.
The same situation prevails in Chinchwad constituency, where former corporators Shatrughan Kate and Chandrakant Nakhate have demanded tickets for party members outside of the Jagtap family. They claim to oppose "dynasty politics" in their constituency, saying the party should ensure that the same family does not get multiple opportunities.
The current MLA of Chinchwad, Ashwini Jagtap, and her brother-in-law, Shankar Jagtap, were both eyeing a ticket for the assembly poll, but the latter's name was announced in the list on Sunday.
In total, at least 14 former corporators of Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation have opposed the candidature of a member of the Jagtap family, including Nakhate and Kate, who announced in a press conference that they would not work for the Mahayuti candidate if either Jagtap is nominated for the Chinchwad seat.
Kate told TOI on Sunday, "We have called a meeting of all 14 former corporators on Monday to take a further decision. We are still firm on our stand but a final decision on whether to contest the election will be taken in the meeting."
There was infighting within BJP for the Bhosari seat as well.
Previously, BJP had tried to quell multiple rebellions by offering other plum posts to some aspirants. Options like key positions in various development boards and appointments as MLCs were being explored.
Against this backdrop, state BJP president Chandrashekhar Bawankule was in Pune on Friday to quell the mutiny by aspirants staking a claim to some of Pune's eight assembly seats. Bawankule stayed overnight in the city and held a series of meetings on Thursday and Friday with several party members adamant about contesting the election.
Pune: Rebels within the BJP, faced with the denial of a ticket after the party published its first list on Sunday, have chosen to take a wait-and-watch stance in the run-up to the state assembly poll.
The party had faced opposition from various quarters ahead of the declaration of tickets but has seemingly chosen not to entertain the brewing rebellion for now.
Although many aspirants had demanded a ticket during the party's internal meetings, two former corporators and senior office-bearers in Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) have publicly raised objections to the candidacy of sitting MLAs of their constituencies — namely Shreenath Bhimale and Amol Balwadkar from the Parvati and Kothrud seats, respectively.
Bhimale announced, "I am not content with the party's decision to deny me a ticket. The future course of action will be decided after an interaction with party workers and my supporters."
Similarly, Balwadkar said the selection of the candidate was "not proper". "The process followed by the party was not transparent," he said, opposing the ticket to Chandrakant Patil, state cabinet minister and Kothrud MLA.
Other aspirants are toeing the same line, saying that they have taken a stand against the declared candidates, not the party. They said they will consult not only their supporters but also the party high command before taking a final call on rebellion.
The same situation prevails in Chinchwad constituency, where former corporators Shatrughan Kate and Chandrakant Nakhate have demanded tickets for party members outside of the Jagtap family. They claim to oppose "dynasty politics" in their constituency, saying the party should ensure that the same family does not get multiple opportunities.
The current MLA of Chinchwad, Ashwini Jagtap, and her brother-in-law, Shankar Jagtap, were both eyeing a ticket for the assembly poll, but the latter's name was announced in the list on Sunday.
In total, at least 14 former corporators of Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation have opposed the candidature of a member of the Jagtap family, including Nakhate and Kate, who announced in a press conference that they would not work for the Mahayuti candidate if either Jagtap is nominated for the Chinchwad seat.
Kate told TOI on Sunday, "We have called a meeting of all 14 former corporators on Monday to take a further decision. We are still firm on our stand but a final decision on whether to contest the election will be taken in the meeting."
There was infighting within BJP for the Bhosari seat as well.
Previously, BJP had tried to quell multiple rebellions by offering other plum posts to some aspirants. Options like key positions in various development boards and appointments as MLCs were being explored.
Against this backdrop, state BJP president Chandrashekhar Bawankule was in Pune on Friday to quell the mutiny by aspirants staking a claim to some of Pune's eight assembly seats. Bawankule stayed overnight in the city and held a series of meetings on Thursday and Friday with several party members adamant about contesting the election.