Campaigning Concludes for Sambhajinagar Civic Polls After Turbulent Fortnight
Campaigning for the Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar Municipal Corporation elections officially ended at 5 PM on Tuesday. This followed a bruising two-week period that exposed deep fault lines within political parties. The volatile atmosphere triggered street protests and kept local police on constant high alert throughout the campaign.
Senior Leaders Make Final Push as City Heads to Polls
Senior politicians made a last-minute push to sway voters in the final hours. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis renewed his promise of ensuring a regular water supply for the city. Deputy Chief Ministers Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar, along with Minister Nilesh Rane, also addressed rallies. Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar now heads into polling after one of its most unpredictable and heated civic campaigns in recent memory.
Amidst the political chaos, the Congress and the NCP (SP) faced significant challenges. They not only failed to capitalize on the internal dissent within the BJP and the AIMIM but also struggled to present themselves as credible alternative choices for the electorate.
Alliance Talks Collapse and Internal Unrest Erupts
The political storm began when talks between the Shiv Sena and the BJP failed to result in a pre-poll alliance. This happened despite several rounds of negotiations. The collapse initially provided a temporary sigh of relief for both parties. It allowed them to accommodate their own loyalists and capable party workers in the candidate lists. Functionaries from both the BJP and the Shiv Sena promptly blamed each other for the failed alliance.
This was soon followed by unprecedented unrest within the BJP ranks. The turmoil largely stemmed from the denial of tickets to loyal party workers. Allegations also surfaced that certain ministers favored their personal assistants and relatives when distributing tickets.
Angry BJP workers expressed their frustration through drastic actions. They launched hunger strikes, attempted self-immolation, and broke open the door of a local party office. In a dramatic protest, some workers even sprayed black paint on the vehicles of Minister Atul Save and Rajya Sabha MP Bhagwat Karad.
The BJP had declared that relatives of sitting MLAs and MPs would not receive tickets. This policy effectively ended the civic poll ambitions of Harshvardhan Karad, son of Bhagwat Karad, and Harshvardhan Kenekar, son of BJP MLC Sanjay Kenekar. Amid this turmoil, the BJP suspended 22 party workers for engaging in anti-party activities.
Street Protests and Police Action in the Old City
Political turbulence in the old city areas spilled directly onto the streets and into police stations. The All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) found itself battling intense internal dissent. This followed its decision to deny tickets to over twenty sitting corporators.
Resentment reached a visible scale in some localities. Photographs of AIMIM state president and former MP Imtiaz Jaleel were torn and trampled by angry supporters. The anger manifested in more dramatic ways as well. Eggs were thrown at Jaleel, his SUV was attacked, and there was an alleged attempt to drag him out and assault him.
Police had to resort to a mild lathicharge to disperse rival groups clashing on the streets. An FIR was registered at the Jinsi police station against Kaleem Qureshi, his brother Habib, and around sixty others. This followed a clash between supporters of Qureshi and Jaleel, where the police themselves were the complainants. Notably, two members of the Qureshi family, including Kaleem, are Congress candidates in the election.
A counter FIR was later filed by Habib's wife, Maleka, at the City Chowk police station. It was filed against AIMIM candidate Feroz Khan and his family members.
Leadership Steps In to Contain Damage
To contain the escalating damage, AIMIM chief and Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi and his brother, MLA Akbaruddin Owaisi, camped extensively in the city. Asaduddin Owaisi undertook four intensive foot marches over two days. These marches covered key areas where party candidates are contesting in the election.
Contrasting Approaches to Dynastic Politics
The campaign also highlighted starkly contrasting approaches to dynastic politics among the parties. While the BJP enforced a ban on tickets for relatives of its MPs and MLAs, politicians from the Shiv Sena openly fielded family members.
Examples from the Shiv Sena include district guardian minister Sanjay Shirsat's daughter Harshada and son Siddhant. Aurangabad Central MLA Pradip Jaiswal's son Rishikesh is also contesting. From the Shiv Sena (UBT), former four-time MP Chandrakant Khaire's nephew Sachin is in the fray. MLC and former leader of opposition Ambadas Danve's brother Rajendra is also contesting the elections.
