Pune bypolls: BJP avoids giving ticket to Tilak family

In an unexpected development, the BJP chose not to give ticket to the Tilak family for the ensuing bye-elections from Kasba Peth in Pune.

Instead, it gave a ticket to Hemant Rasane from the Kasba Peth, one of the oldest residential areas located near the historic Shaniwarwada area of Pune city.

From Chinchwad, the BJP fielded Ashwini Jagtap.

The bye-elections have been necessitated following the death of BJP MLAs - Mukta Tilak and Laxman Jagtap, who represented the Kasba Peth and Chinchwad, respectively.

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Ashwini Jagtap is wife of Laxman Jagtap - and the BJP has appealed to opposition parties to make the elections unopposed as a deceased MLA's family member is contesting.

From Kasba Peth, was expected that someone from the Tilak family would be considered for the nomination, however, at the last moment, the BJP preferred to give it to someone else.

Rasane is a three-time corporator of the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) and was elected in 2002, 2012 and 2017 and had served as Chairman of PMC Standing Committee for four years.

Mukta Tilak was the great-grand-daughter-in-law of the legendary nationalist and revolutionary leader Bal Gangadhar Tilak.

The name of Mukta Tilak’s husband Shailesh Tilak - the great grandson of Lokmanya Tilak. Mukta and Shailesh’s son Kunal Tilak were doing the rounds.

On 22 December, 2022, Mukta Tilak died of cancer. She was a first-time MLA and a former Mayor of Pune city.

On 3 January, 2023, Jagtap died of cancer. He was a three-time MLA having won once as an Independent and twice on a BJP ticket.

On Friday, Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, Higher and Technical Education Minister Chandrakant Patil and other local leaders met Tilak’s husband Shailesh Tilak in a surprise visit to their residence at Kesariwada. What transpired in the meeting is not yet known.

A dejected and emotional Shailesh Tilak said: “We would abide by what the party has decided….we are with BJP, we would not take any step…”

The Tilak family had expressed readiness to contest the Kasba Peth bypoll but the party chose to appoint Kunal Tilak as state spokesperson and denied a ticket to the family.