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The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has unveiled its initial list of 99 candidates for the upcoming Maharashtra assembly elections. This announcement comes amidst a period of intense political maneuvering as the state gears up for a crucial election on November 20th, with results expected to be declared on November 23rd. Leading the charge for the BJP is Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, who will be contesting from his well-established political base in Nagpur South West. The party's president in Maharashtra, Chandrashekhar Bawankule, will be vying for a seat in Kamthi.
The BJP's list also features notable figures like Mumbai BJP president Ashish Selar, who has been fielded from the Vandre West constituency. Senior party leader and Lok Sabha MP Narayan Rane's son, Nitesh Rane, will be attempting to retain his current assembly seat in Kankavli. Other prominent candidates include Girish Mahajan from Jamner, Sudhir Mungantiwar from Ballarpur, Mangal Prabhat Lodha from Malabar Hill, Rahul Narwekar from Colaba, and Chhatrapati Shivendra Raje Bhosale, a descendant of Chatrapati Shivaji, from Satara.
The BJP's ambitions for the upcoming election are closely intertwined with its participation in the Mahayuti alliance, which also includes Eknath Shinde's Shiv Sena and Ajit Pawar's Nationalist Congress Party (NCP). Although the BJP has expressed its intention to contest approximately 150 seats, negotiations with its alliance partners regarding seat-sharing arrangements have proven to be complex. While the BJP emerged as the victor in the 2019 elections, securing 105 seats, the 2024 Lok Sabha election witnessed a shift in momentum as the Congress-led Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) claimed 30 of the 48 seats, while the BJP-led Mahayuti managed only 17 seats.