Pune: Much on expected lines, hyper-local issues are panning out and being discussed in Pune, Maharashtra’s cultural capital, which has transformed over decades from a Congress bastion into a BJP stronghold.
The contest here mainly involves Murlidhar Mohol of BJP and Ravindra Dhangekar of Congress, but the entry of Vasant More, a firebrand politician who is now associated with Prakash Ambedkar-led Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA), has added more heat to the electoral battle.
Incidentally, the political career of Mohol, Dhangekar and More began in the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC).
In the triangular contest, the BJP has an advantage but the evolving political situation can have a bearing.
In March, because of internal differences, More resigned from the Raj Thackeray-led MNS.
Thereafter, he met NCP (SP) supremo Sharad Pawar, however, it did not work out. Now, he is the VBA’s pointsman. In fact, when Raj quit the then Balasaheb Thackeray-led Shiv Sena because of differences with cousin Uddhav Thackeray, More was among the first batch of leaders to side with him.
A Maratha with an RSS background, Mohol secured the BJP ticket even though former Pune city unit chief Jagdish Mulik and RSS-BJP functionary Sunil Deodhar too were keen to contest. Mohol is considered close to Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis.
On the other hand, Congress chose Dhangekar, an OBC leader, who had in the Kasba Peth by-elections breached the three-decade-old BJP bastion in the heart of Pune city.
The five Assembly segments of the Pune seat are Vadhgaon Sheri, Shivajinagar, Kothrud, Parvati, Pune Cantonment (SC) and Kasba Peth. Four are under the control of BJP, one is held by the Congress and another by NCP. The NCP legislator switched sides from Sharad Pawar to Ajit Pawar.
“Mohol was Pune mayor with a brute majority. He was in the PMC for four terms, while Dhangekar three and More twice,” Pune-based politicians said, adding that more local issues are surfacing due to the candidates’ past associations with the city.
“There are issues like urbanisation, water, power, traffic in Pune. These are being discussed in the polls. Hindutva is a factor as Pune is a RSS-BJP stronghold. There was some resentment and hence BJP played strategically. It gave Rajya Sabha berth to Medha Kulkarni, a Brahmin, and fielded Mohol, a Maratha,” said Rohit Chandavarkar, a veteran journalist and analyst.
“Mohol is close to Fadnavis,” he said, adding that with evolving political dynamics, Mohol also has the backing of Deputy Chief Minister and NCP president Ajit Pawar, who is the guardian minister of Pune district.
“The phenomenon is that, in a three-cornered fight, the BJP has an advantage and it is a widely accepted fact,” said Abhijit Mulye, a veteran political observer.
“The RSS, its affiliates and the BJP have done a lot of groundwork in Pune and this is going to pay dividends,” he said.
A senior politician in Pune pointed out that had the BJP fielded a Brahmin candidate instead of a Maratha, the situation would have been different. Moreover, the Raj Thackeray factor is also helping the BJP. “In fact, Raj Thackeray has been nursing two constituencies of Pune and Nashik for a long time. Since he is with the NDA now, it would have an impact,” a senior MNS leader said.