LS Polls: Shiv Sena leader Shivtare to take call on contesting from Baramati soon

Mumbai, March 18 (IANS) Shiv Sena leader Vijay Shivtare said on Monday that he will decide on contesting the Baramati Lok Sabha seat after consultations with his party workers and supporters in the next 3-4 days. 

Shivtare, 64, has had another meeting with Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, who has reportedly advised him to maintain restraint and adhere to the principles of alliance politics.

The ex-minister from Purandar (Pune) has declared over the past 12 days that he will contest from Baramati as an Independent nominee against the ruling ally Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), and the opposition Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar).

NCP President and Deputy CM Ajit Pawar is planning to field his wife Sunetra A. Pawar against her sister-in-law and NCP (SP) Working President Supriya Sule, the incumbent MP from Baramati. 

Interestingly, both Sunetra Pawar and Supriya Sule enjoy cordial relations in public, and have been seen greeting and hugging each other on different occasions when they met during poll campaign - making the upcoming election battle even more dramatic.

Several recent comments by Shivtare have served to embarrass both the MahaYuti allies -- Shiv Sena and NCP -- with frantic backroom efforts underway to mollify him and ensure he doesn’t play spoilsport in Baramati.

Even on Monday, Shivtare proclaimed that “even if I withdraw from the electoral contest, Sunetra A. Pawar can never win from Baramati”, again rattling the Ajit Pawar camp, which has issued counter-threats to the Shiv Sena.

Two days after the Lok Sabha election schedule was announced, the Ajit Pawar faction came under fire from the entire Sharad Pawar clan in Pune, including his brother Shriniwas A. Pawar, his wife Sharmila Shriniwas Pawar, their son Yugendra, and nephew Rohit R. Pawar, among others.

--IANS

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