Lok Sabha elections 2024: ‘NCP(SP)’s Ahmednagar candidate up against formidable rival’

Nilesh Lanke a former MLA contesting this Lok Sabha constituency on an NCP SP ticket has been able to create a dent in the campaign of his opponent the sitting BJP MP Sujay Vikhe Patil but defeating his rival will not be an easy taskAhmednagar is part of Western Maharashtra the agriculture and industrial belt of the state The Vikhe Patils one of the most influential families in the district are renowned for having established Asiarsquos first cooperative sugar mill Four generations of the family have been a part of the cooperative movement and have also been involved in the fields of medicine and educationSujay Vikhe Patil was elected as an MP for the first time in 2019 after gaining 704 lakh votes defeating the runnerup NCPrsquos Sangram Jagtap by 281 lakh votes In the 2014 election the BJP candidate Dilipkumar Gandhi after securing 605 lakh votes NCPrsquos Rajeev Rajale who came second polled 395lakh votesFrom rebel to candidateLocal political experts said Lanke was originally with the undivided Shiv Sena A firstgeneration politician he began his political career as a gram panchayat member in 2010 He joined the undivided NCP before the 2019 Assembly election and was elected as the MLA of the Parner segment During the split he took Ajit Pawarrsquos side But as he wanted to contest the Lok Sabha election he switched sides and succeeded in getting a ticketIn the Mahayuti seatsharing Ahmednagar went to the BJP Ajit Pawar had no stake whatsoever there but Lanke had aspirations Sharad Pawar wanted a good candidate and knew Lanke was the one He convinced Lanke a prominent face to return Lankersquos Sena background helped in Pawarrsquos new equations with UddhavVikhe Patilrsquos family were originally with the Congress But the MP joined the BJP for the 2014 Lok Sabha poll Later his father Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil also joined the saffron party He is now a minister in the state cabinet Sujay Vikhe Patilrsquos grandfather Balasaheb Vikhe Patil was a Shiv Sena MP in 1998Pandemic saviourPolitical observers said Lanke is known for offering relief to villagers during the pandemic He started a COVID19 centre in Parner which was a blessing for locals an observer said ldquoHe is receiving a good amount of support from the youth However four generations of his rivalrsquos family politicians have been involved in politics and the cooperative movement in the district Though Lanke has succeeded in creating a wave against Vikhe Patil and the BJP it wonrsquot be easy to defeat the family as they have good connections and goodwill in the whole district Lanke has connections in one or two of the six Assembly segments that comprise the Lok Sabha seat His work for the common man and grounded nature will help himrdquo said the observerSwitching sidesCandidates who contested the election on an NCP ticket against the BJP in the past two Lok Sabha elections are now with the Mahayuti Rajeev Rajalersquos wife Monika is the BJP MLA of the Shevgaon Assembly constituency while Sangram Jagtap the MLA of Ahmednagar City is now with the NCP faction led by Deputy Chief Minister Ajit PawarConstituency factsThere are 1981 lakh voters in the Ahmednagar Lok Sabha seat of which 1032 lakh are male 948 are women and 119 transgender individuals While 3233 per cent of the electorate belongs to the Maratha community 2327 per cent are in the OBC category Muslim and Dalit voters account for 18 to 20 per cent and 1819 per cent of the electorsVoting calculationWhile the Vikhe Patil family and BJP have been getting six to seven lakh votes the NCP has been getting three to four lakh votes While the NCP votes will be divided due to the split in the party the BJP has been facing the challenge of Maratha reservation and the anger of farmers Shiv Sena UBT is with Lanke Two MLAs of the six representing the Assembly segments of Ahmednagar belong to the NCP SP while two are with the BJP and one with the NCP One seat Parner is vacantIn the Karjat Jamkhed constituency MLA Rohit Pawar the grandson of Sharad Pawar is with Lanke Ram Shinde a BJP leader who was willing to contest the Lok Sabha election had been denied the ticket that was given to Vikhe Patil NCP chief Sharad Pawar and Lanke have successfully managed to put up strong local opponents of the BJP and Jagtap the NCP Ajit MLA This factor will help them at the pollsIn the constituency the Maratha reservation issue which presents a challenge to the BJP isnrsquot a burning issue Villagers in Parner tehsil said that Maratha of Ahmednagar are availing themselves of OBC reservation by applying as KunbisldquoBJP and Vikhe Patil will face the anger of farmers But this displeasure is not so overwhelming that it can cause Sujay Vikhe Patilrsquos defeat The price of yield and milk is an issue But there are alternatives to agriculture due to industrialisation and the cooperative movementrdquo another villager saidLongstanding feudHistorically after the demise of Congress leader Yashwantrao Chavan two groups were formed in the state under the leadership of Sharad Pawar and Shankarrao ChavanThe Shankarrao Chavan group was considered to be opposed to that of Yashwantrao Chavan At that time Balasaheb Vikhe Patil supported the former group The dispute between Balasaheb Vikhe Patil and Sharad Pawar came to a head in the 1991 Lok Sabha electionsYashwantrao Gadakh Patil was the Congress candidate from Ahmednagar As Balasaheb Vikhe Patil did not get the nomination he contested as an independent against Gadakh But Yashwantrao Gadakh Patil was elected in a close contest After that Balasaheb Vikhe Patil filed a case in the court alleging that Sharad Pawar and Yashwantrao Gadakh Patil had insulted his character during the election The case eventually reached the Supreme Court Sharad Pawar was pulled up by the court while Gadakh Patil couldnrsquot contest elections for six years During the 2019 elections Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil appealed to Sharad Pawar to give this seat to the Congress But Sharad Pawar refused and later Sujay Vikhe Patil joined the BJP704LNo of votes polled by Sujay Vikhe Patil in 2019Candidatesrsquo strengths and weaknessesSujay Vikhe Patil the BJP candidateAdvantages Forthgeneration connect with district and links to cooperative movement BJP boothlevel management Elder voters are emotionally attached to family Reach in every villageDisadvantages Does not have personal connections at ground level Facing anger of Marathas and farmers Internal discontent exists within the BJPNilesh Lanke NCP SP candidateAdvantages Face of common villager Did great work during the pandemic Attractive to the youth Has command over industrial labourersDisadvantages Doesnrsquot have machinery at the ground level Not as financially endowed as opponent Doesnrsquot have reach compared to rival