The Ram Mandir, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s popularity, rising inflation, unemployment, and the farmers’ crisis — as in much of the rest of the country, these are the five most talked-about issues on ground by voters and political leaders alike in Maharashtra, where voters in five Lok Sabha constituencies will go to the polls on April 19.
The constituencies where voting will take place in the first phase are Nagpur, Ramtek (a seat reserved for Scheduled Castes), Chandrapur, Bhandara-Gondia, and Gadchiroli-Chimur (reserved for Scheduled Tribes), all in the Vidarbha region.
In 2019, the BJP-Shiv Sena coalition had won four of these seats, barring Chandrapur, the lone seat clinched by the Congress in the western State. While four of these seats will see a direct contest between BJP and Congress candidates this time around, Ramtek — which was represented twice by former Prime Minister P.V. Narasimha Rao — is witnessing a electoral battle between the Congress and the Shiv Sena, led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde. Two more issues resonating among voters here are the impact of the Maratha reservation, and the internal splits in both the Shiv Sena and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP).
BJP vs Congress
Key figures from both the national parties — including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, and Wayanad MP Rahul Gandhi — have been actively campaigning in the region. In fact, Mr. Modi commenced his campaign in the State with a rally in Chandrapur, followed by another one in the Nagpur district two days later. During his speeches, the Prime Minister launched a scathing attack against the Congress. In one analogy, he likened the Opposition party to bitter gourd, whose flavours remain unaltered even when “fried in ghee or sweetened with sugar”. He also claimed that B.R. Ambedkar’s soul would be blessing him for the abrogation of Article 370.
Despite hosting the headquarters of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), the BJP’s ideological parent, at Nagpur, the region was long a Congress bastion until it was breached by the BJP a decade ago. Each constituency has its own caste dynamics, which plays a pivotal role in the polls. The BJP candidates in Nagpur and Chandrapur — Union Minister Nitin Gadkari and State Minister Sudhir Mungatiwar, respectively — both belong to micro-minority communities, and are contesting against Congress candidates Vikas Thakre and Prathiba Dhanorkar, both from the dominant Kunbi community.
Their BJP candidates’ campaigns focus on their individual personas, the popularity of Mr. Modi, and developmental works. Mr. Thakre is relying on his strong local connections, the party’s historical presence in the area, and support from Dalits, minorities, and other backward classes (OBCs), in addition to his own Kunbi community. Apart from the support of her community, Ms. Dhanorkar is seeking sympathy votes alongside the combined vote bank of the Maha Vikas Aghadi coalition — the Chandrapur seat was held by her late husband, Suresh ‘Balu’ Dhanorkar, who passed away last year.
Proxy wars
In Ramtek, a constituency with a mix of Nagpur’s semi-urban and rural voters, where the Congress’ original candidate Rashmi Barve was disqualified from running due to the rejection of her caste validity certificate. Stepping into her place is her husband, Shamsundar Barve. He goes up against Raju Parwe, a former Congress MLA from Umred who recently defected to Mr. Shinde’s Shiv Sena. This contest has also become a prestige issue for Congress MLA Sunil Kedar and BJP State chief Chandrashekhar Bawankule, who both hail from the area.
Bhandara-Gondia, the stronghold of Congress State chief Nana Patole and NCP leader and former Union Minister Praful Patel, is another seat to watch in the first phase. The BJP’s sitting MP Sunil Mendhe is taking on the Congress’ Prashanth Patole, a distant relative of Mr. Nana Patole. Sources said that the Congress State chief refused to contest this election and pushed for Dr. Prashanth Patole’s candidature instead.
Avoiding Naxal issue
In the Naxal-hit tribal-dominated constituency of Gadchiroli-Chimur, the Congress has fielded Namdev Kirsan, a new face in politics, against the BJP’s sitting MP Ashok Nete. Dr. Kirsan is backed by the Leader of Opposition in the State Assembly, Vijay Wadettiwar. Mr. Modi has said that the Naxal menace has come down drastically in the district in the past 10 years. Local leaders, however, are refraining from talking about the outlawed force, fearing a loss of votes, given that the majority of the red cadre, who have been killed or are still hiding in the jungles, hail from this region.
Maharashtra sends 48 MPs to the Lok Sabha, the largest number after Uttar Pradesh. The State will vote in five phases, starting from April 19.
