BJP Announces Candidates for Maharashtra Lok Sabha Elections, Reshuffles Sitting MPs

Pune: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has made significant strides in finalising its roster for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections in Maharashtra, slated to be held from April 19 to May 20 in five phases. With the release of five lists at the national level, the party has strategically nominated 23 candidates from the state, aligning closely with its previous tally of 23 seats won in 2019.

In a notable reshuffling of candidates, the BJP has opted to field new faces in lieu of five sitting Members of Parliament (MPs). The concerned constituencies include Mumbai North, Beed, Mumbai North East, Jalgaon, and Solapur. Here’s a breakdown of the changes:

North Mumbai: The Lok Sabha ticket has been conferred upon Piyush Goyal, displacing the sitting MP Gopal Shetty.

Mumbai North East: Mihir Kotecha will contest in place of Manoj Kotak.

Beed: Pankaja Munde has been nominated instead of Pritam Munde.

Jalgaon: Smita Wagh emerges as the chosen candidate, replacing Unmesh Patil.

Solapur: Ram Satpute secures the ticket, superseding Jaisiddheshwar Swamy.

The complete list of 23 BJP candidates announced thus far is as follows:

1) Chandrapur- Sudhir Mungantiwar
2) Raver– Raksha Khadse
3) Jalna- Raosaheb Danve
4) Beed– Pankaja Munde
5) Pune- Muralidhar Mohol
6) Sangli– Sanjay Kaka Patil
7) Madha- Ranjit Nimbalkar
8) Dhule– Subhash Bhamre
9) North Mumbai- Piyush Goyal
10) North East Mumbai- Mihir Kotecha
11) Nanded- Prataprao Chikhlikar
12) Ahmednagar- Sujay Vikhe Patil
13) Latur- Sudhakar Shringare
14) Jalgaon- Smita Vagh
15) Dindori- Bharti Pawar
16) Bhiwandi- Kapil Patil
17) Wardha- Ramdas Tadas
18) Nagpur- Nitin Gadkari
9) Akola- Anup Dhotre
20) Nandurbar- Dr. Hina Gavit
21) Solapur– Ram Satpute
22) Bhandara-Gondia– Sunil Mendhe
23) Gadchiroli-Chimur– Ashok Nete

As the BJP finalises its lineup, the allocation of seats within the Mahayuti alliance remains unresolved. Amidst ongoing deliberations, the allocation of seats to coalition partners such as the Shiv Sena and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) remains a point of contention. Meanwhile, the Congress has unveiled its list of 12 candidates under the Mahavikas Aghadi banner, signalling the onset of political manoeuvring in the state. With anticipation building ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, all eyes are on the Shiv Sena UBT group, whose party list is set to be announced tomorrow.