The political landscape in Maharashtra remains charged post-Lok Sabha elections, with significant attention now on the election for four Graduates and Teachers Members of Legislative Council (MLC) seats. This scenario will remain intense until the Assembly elections for 288 constituencies scheduled in October.
On Wednesday, more than 4.29 lakh voters will determine the fate of 55 candidates in the biennial elections for the Mumbai Graduates, Mumbai Teachers, Nashik Teachers, and Konkan Graduates constituencies in the upper house of the State legislature. Results are expected on July 1.
The Legislative Council currently consists of 78 seats: BJP holds 22, Shiv Sena (undivided) 11, NCP (undivided) nine, and Congress eight seats. Independents and smaller parties occupy the rest, with 21 seats vacant due to recent political realignments.
In the Mumbai Graduates constituency, the main contenders among the eight candidates are former State minister Anil Parab of Shiv Sena (UBT) and BJP’s Kiran Shelar. There are 1.20 lakh eligible voters in this constituency, including over 71,000 men, more than 49,000 women, and six others. These elections are necessary as the current members’ terms will expire in July.
Speaking to The Hindu, Mr. Parab mentioned that out of 1.20 lakh voters, 65,000 to 70,000 were registered through their party. “The results depend on voter turnout. We urge voters to step out and exercise their franchise. I have campaigned in schools, colleges, and other institutions, sharing my progress report and vision for the constituency,” the Uddhav Thackeray loyalist stated.
He also alleged that 10,000 to 12,000 voters registered by his party are missing from the final voter list, accusing the Election Commission of India (ECI) of political interference. He claimed that names registered by rival parties were included in the list.
“We suspect that the deliberate exclusion of 10,000 to 12,000 names from our enrolled voters’ list in the supplementary list is intentional,” Mr. Parab said.
In the Mumbai Teachers constituency, 13 candidates, including Shiv Sena (UBT)’s J.M. Abhayankar and NCP’s Shivaji Nalawade, are contesting the seat, which has over 15,000 voters, including 11,800 women and 3,953 men. The BJP is backing independent candidate Shivnath Darade, while Shiv Sena supports independent nominee Shivaji Shendge.
The Konkan Graduates constituency will see a direct contest between BJP’s MLC Niranjan Davkhare and Congress candidate Ramesh Keer, among 13 candidates. This constituency has 2.23 lakh eligible voters, including 1.27 lakh men, 95,000 women, and 28 others.
Meanwhile, the Nashik Teachers constituency features 21 candidates, including Sena (UBT)’s Sandeep Gulve, rival Shiv Sena’s Kishore Darade, and independent candidate Vivek Kolhe. This constituency has over 69,000 eligible voters, including 46,000 men and over 22,000 women.
The State will also witness another round of MLC polls for 11 seats on July 12. For these 11 seats, MLAs will vote to elect the MLCs. This will be the first MLC election after the Shiv Sena and NCP split.
