LS polls: Ex-Shiv Sena MLA Vijay Shivtare throws hat in the ring for high stakes Baramati seat

Former Shiv Sena MLA Vijay Shivtare on Wednesday said he will contest the upcoming Lok Sabha election from Baramati in Maharashtra as an independent candidate to be the "voice of common voters" of the constituency. Notably, NCP (SP) head Sharad Pawar recently said MP Supriya Sule would be his party's candidate from Baramati, amid speculation that his nephew and Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar's wife Sunetra Pawar could be fielded from there.

Baramati in Pune district is the political stronghold of Pawars.

Talking to PTI, Shivtare, who represented the Purandar assembly seat in Baramati before facing defeat in 2019, said he was firm on his decision to contest as an independent candidate from the Baramati Lok Sabha seat as the "voice of common voters" of the constituency.


"(Maharashtra Chief Minister and Shiv Sena head) Eknath Shinde is my leader and I will make him understand my stand," he said.

Shivtare said he has not been approached by any political leader over his decision to contest from Baramati.

He claimed that seven lakh persons voted in the favour of Pawars and 5.8 lakh persons did not for anyone from that family in the last assembly and Lok Sabha elections.

The Pawar family is winning for the last 41 years but development is centred around Baramati city only, he said.

Nearly two lakh persons in Supa-Pargana in western Baramati have been facing water scarcity, Shivtare claimed.

The former MLA, who belongs to the Shiv Sena-led by CM Shinde, said he had got a Rs 118 crore water supply scheme for Fursingi and Devachi Urli villages (near Purandar in Baramati), having a population of four-and-half lakh, and required Rs 25 crore more.

"I have been asking for the money since 2019 but did not get it. But Ajit Pawar had sanctioned Rs 7 crore for the Baramati bus stand," he said.

Shivtare claimed that Indapur, Bhor, Daund, Purandar and Khadakwasala assembly segments (falling under Baramati Lok Sabha constituency) have not got any central or state government projects.

Asked about Ajit Pawar's statement in 2019 that he will see to it that Shivtare doesn't become a MLA, the former legislator said he has forgiven the NCP leader.

Sanjay Jagtap of the Congress defeated Shivtare from Purandar in 2019.