Kolhapur BJP leader and Devendra Fadnavis aide Raje Samarjeetsinh Ghatge to switch to NCP (SP) camp

Jayant Patil with Raje Samarjeetsinh Ghatge. Pic X

Raje Samarjeetsinh Ghatge, a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader from Kolhapur and a close aide of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister (CM) Devendra Fadnavis, on Friday said that he would be joining the Sharad Pawar-led Nationalist Congress Party (SP) on September 3.

He wanted to contest on a BJP ticket from Kagal, which is currently held by Hasan Mushrif of the Ajit Pawar-led NCP. As the general assumption is that the parties in the ruling alliance will be allowed to hold the seats on which they have legislators, it was clear that Ghatge would have had to give up his ambition for Mushrif.

Ghatge, who announced his decision after meeting his supporters in Kagal in Kolhapur, said he had spoken to Fadnavis about it. "I met my leader Fadnavis saheb and told him that I have taken this decision. I do not want to comment further on this," said Ghatge, who was joined by NCP (SP) Maharashtra chief Jayant Patil for the meeting. "Ghatge will join NCP (SP) on September 3 in the presence of Sharad Pawar," Patil said during the meeting with Ghatge's supporters. Patil asked the supporters if they were okay with NCP (SP) giving Ghatge a ticket from Kagal.

Speculations about Ghatge joining NCP (SP) were rife after he met Sharad Pawar.

The Election Commission is yet to announce the dates for the Maharashtra Assembly polls but it is likely to be held in October-November.

On August 16, the Election Commission of India (ECI) announced the schedule of elections in Haryana and the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir that will be held from September 18 to October 1 while the schedule for Maharashtra Assembly elections is yet to be announced.

During the press conference, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Rajiv Kumar said that the high demand for security forces in Jammu and Kashmir is the primary reason for not holding Maharashtra Assembly elections.

The Maharashtra Assembly polls are expected to be held after Diwali in November this year, instead of October, giving the Mahayuti government at least a month more in office before it takes on the Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA). On Friday, ECI parted with the practice of holding Maharashtra elections together with Haryana's.

(With PTI inputs)