Pune: The Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar) has announced its first list of 45 candidates for the upcoming Maharashtra Assembly elections.

Among the key candidates is former MLA Bapusaheb Pathare, who has been nominated to contest from the Wadgaon Sheri constituency in Pune.

Pathare, a veteran politician with a career spanning various local governance roles, began his political journey as the sarpanch of Kharadi before moving on to serve in the Panchayat Samiti, Zilla Parishad, and Pune Municipal Corporation.

In 2009, he was elected as an MLA from Wadgaon Sheri on an NCP ticket. Although he did not contest in subsequent elections and briefly joined the BJP, Pathare later returned to the NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar) under Sharad Pawar’s leadership. He is now preparing for his second bid as an MLA.

Speaking about his candidacy, Pathare expressed gratitude for the trust placed in him by Sharad Pawar and stated his confidence that the people of Wadgaon Sheri will back him once again.

He emphasized that his campaign will focus on development, citing the work he had accomplished during his earlier tenure as MLA and pointing out the stagnation in the constituency over the last decade.

Pathare highlighted traffic congestion as a key issue and pledged to prioritize its resolution if elected.

Responding to claims made by the current MLA, Sunil Tingre, who stated that he had brought significant funds to the constituency,

Pathare countered by saying that while such claims exist on paper, the actual development is nowhere to be seen on the ground.