Pune: As the deadline for candidate applications has passed, the Congress party has received an enthusiastic response from aspirants looking to contest the upcoming Maharashtra Assembly elections.
A total of 24 candidates have expressed their interest in running across seven Assembly constituencies in Pune city. Among these constituencies, Pune Cantonment has emerged as the most sought-after seat, attracting the interest of 10 potential candidates.
This surge in interest follows Congress's successful performance in the Pune Cantonment area during the last Lok Sabha elections.
Seven of the interested candidates, including prominent names like Sunil Tatyaram Bhosale, Chhaya Balkrishna Jadhav, and Ravindra Ranganath Arade, submitted their applications at the Pune Congress Bhavan.
Meanwhile, former minister Ramesh Bagwe and his son Avinash Bagwe, a former corporator, chose to submit their applications directly at the Congress headquarters in Mumbai, bypassing the local office. This has led to speculation about which of the two will ultimately be chosen to contest the Cantonment seat.
Ramesh Bagwe, who has previously served as a minister, suffered defeats in the 2014 and 2019 Assembly elections. A resolution passed at a Congress convention in Jaipur, which discourages giving another chance to candidates who have lost twice, might be implemented in Maharashtra.
If this resolution affects Ramesh Bagwe's candidacy, there is speculation that his son Avinash might be fielded from the Cantonment constituency instead.
In a related development, Ramesh Bagwe has been actively lobbying with senior Congress leaders to replace current city president Arvind Shinde.
In response, Shinde has brought Avinash Salve, a four-term corporator from the Thackeray faction, into the Congress fold, with promises of a ticket from the Pune Cantonment constituency.
Salve’s entry is seen as a strategic move, considering the caste dynamics of the region, and has set the stage for a fierce competition among the 10 aspirants for the Cantonment seat.