Mumbai, Nov 13 (IANS) The Ajit Pawar-led Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), on Thursday, released the list of 40 star campaigners for the upcoming local and civic body elections in Maharashtra.

The NCP plans to fight these elections in an alliance with the BJP and Shiv Sena but it has also left it to the local party units to take a decision on going solo or fight polls together with the MahaYuti allies considering the local level political situation.

The star campaigners include NCP President and Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, party’s National Working President Praful Patel, State party President Sunil Tatkare, Maharashtra Medical Education Minister Hasan Mushrif, former Minister Dhananjay Munde, State Food and Drug Administration Minister Narahari Zirwal, State Sports Minister Manikrao Kokate, State Cooperation Minister Babasaheb Patil, State Relief and Rehabilitation Minister Makarand Patil, State Agriculture Minister Dattatray Bharane, Deputy Speaker of the Legislative Assembly Anna Bansode, Women and Child Development Minister Aditi Tatkare, Minister of State for Tourism Indranil Naik, former Minister Dharmaraobaba Atram, former Minister Anil Bhaidas Patil, former Minister Sanjay Bansode, MLA Pratap Patil-Chikhlikar, former Minister Nawab Malik, senior leader Sayaji Shinde, Chairman of the Minorities Commission Mushtaq Antulay, former MP Sameer Bhujbal, MLA Amol Mitkari, MLA Sana Malik-Sheikh, State Mahila President Rupali Chakankar, MLC Idris Nayakvadi, former MLA Aniket Tatkare, former MLA Zeeshan Siddiqui, former MLC Rajendra Jain, Mumbai Working President Siddharth Kamble, State General Secretary Suraj Chavan, former legislator Lahu Kande, OBC Cell State President Kalyan Aakhade, Social Cell State President Sunil Magare, Minority Cell State President Nazer Qazi, Mahesh Shinde, Rajalakshmi Bhosale, Surekhata Thackeray, Najeeb Mulla, Pratibha Shinde and Vikas Pasalkar.

Dhananjay Munde had to resign as the State Agriculture Minister in the wake of controversy over the killing of Sarpanch Santosh Deshmukh from Beed district while Manikrao Kokate was removed from the Agriculture department after a video went viral about him playing rummy in the State Legislature.

Chakankar has been criticised within the party for making controversial statements after the suicide of a doctor from Satara government hospital.

Besides, Nawab Malik is on bail in connection with the money laundering case while Suraj Chavan, who was embroiled in a controversy over the assault case, has been recently appointed as party spokesperson and now as the star campaigner.

Suraj Chavan had to step down as the NCP’s state youth wing after the video went viral as he allegedly assaulted Chhava Sanghatna State President Vijaykumar Ghatge in July.

Thereafter, he was appointed as the state party general secretary.

The Maharashtra government later inducted Suraj Chavan into the committee to draft the state’s revised youth policy.

Elections to 246 municipal councils and 42 nagar panchayats will be held on December 2 as the state will witness local body polls after a gap of more than five years, the Maharashtra State Election Commission has announced.

The counting of votes will be held on December 3.

Already BJP and Shiv Sena-UBT have announced the list of their star campaigners.

State Minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule, who has been appointed as the BJP’s Maharashtra in-charge, claimed that the MahaYuti would secure 51 per cent of the vote share and win all the local bodies with a two-thirds majority.

“The BJP-led MahaYuti government will sweep all the urban and local bodies with a decisive mandate,” he said.

“The BJP will also ensure that there are no disputes or differences among the alliance partners.”

–IANS

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