Mumbai
On Thursday, Sunetra Pawar, wife of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, submitted her nomination papers as the NCP candidate for the Rajya Sabha elections. Senior party leader and state minister Chhagan Bhujbal expressed his initial interest in running but clarified that he wasn’t upset with Sunetra Pawar’s nomination. He emphasized that the decision was made collectively by the party.
In the recent Lok Sabha elections, Sunetra Pawar faced defeat in Baramati, while her sister-in-law, Supriya Sule, achieved her fourth consecutive victory in the same constituency. Bhujbal reiterated that the decision to nominate Sunetra Pawar was finalized during a party meeting on Wednesday evening.
The Rajya Sabha secretariat has announced ten vacancies in the Upper House, including two from Maharashtra. Bhujbal addressed concerns about nepotism by stating that the nomination was not solely Ajit Pawar’s decision but was made by the party’s core group.
He also mentioned that vacancies arose after some Rajya Sabha members, like Piyush Goyal and Udayanraje Bhonsle from Maharashtra, were elected to the Lok Sabha. Bhujbal dismissed any disappointment over his exclusion, emphasizing his long-standing commitment to collective decision-making within the party.
Previously, Bhujbal wanted to contest the Lok Sabha elections from Nashik, but the seat went to the Shiv Sena’s candidate, who won.
