Shinde Sena objects to BJP fielding candidates from 4 seats in Maharashtra

Cracks seem to have appeared in the Mahayuti alliance days after the BJP announced its list of 99 candidates for the Maharashtra Assembly polls. The Shiv Sena faction led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has objected to BJP fielding its candidates from Kalyan East, Thane, Airoli and Murbad.
The BJP has fielded Sulabha Gaikwad, the wife of Ganpat Gaikwad from Kalyan East. Shiv Sena workers are against her nomination as she’s the wife of Ganpat, who is in jail for allegedly opening fire on Sena leader Mahesh Gaikwad inside Hill Line police station in Ulhas Nagar.
Sena workers have been opposing Sulabha’s nomination since the beginning and feel a Shiv Sena leader should be fielded from Kalyan East, considered to be a bastion of the Shinde-led faction. The party workers have also threatened not to campaign for the BJP candidate.
Shiv Sena workers are also not pleased with the saffron party’s decision to field Sanjay Kelkar in Thane, considered to be Shiv Sena supremo and Chief Minister Eknath Shinde’s stronghold.
Similarly, Shiv Sena workers are unhappy with BJP fielding sitting MLA Kisan Shankar Kathore from Murbad.
Meanwhile, the party is also against the BJP fielding Ganesh Naik from the Airoli seat. Naik’s son, Sandeep Naik, left the BJP after he was denied a ticket for the Assembly polls and joined Sharad Pawar’s NCP faction. He will be contesting from the Belapur seat on a NCP (SP) ticket.
In the BJP’s first list, 99 candidates, including Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, state BJP chief Chandrashekhar Bawankule, and party leaders Ram Kadam and Nitesh Rane were named by the party.
So far, over 80 sitting MLAs will contest again while five candidates who lost in the 2019 Assembly polls have been given tickets. Six candidates have been fielded from some seats where the BJP lost last time.
Assembly elections in Maharashtra will take place in a single phase on November 20 and the counting of votes will happen on November 23.