Nanded: The bypoll to the Nanded Lok Sabha constituency – necessitated due to the demise of Congress MP Vasantrao Chavan soon after the elections earlier this year – has emerged as a high stakes battle for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Congress. This is an election hoping to cash in on sympathy for the late leader and prove that voters in the Marathwada region are still not impressed with the Narendra Modi-led central government. But the BJP is keen to prove that it can reclaim a seat in a region where it was trounced in Lok Sabha polls, thanks to developments over the past six months. A win in Nanded, which is populated by a considerable number of Muslims, would also do a little to shed off its anti-minority image.

The Nanded bypoll will take place on the same day as the assembly election, November 20. The two major contenders BJP and Congress have fielded candidates with no experience of contesting Lok Sabha polls so far. The BJP has now changed its plan to field former MP Pratap Chikhalikar in view of his heaviest defeat during the 2024 Lok Sabha poll by 59,442 votes. Instead, it's announced fielding its district president Santuk Hambarde. For this seat, the Congress has nominated Ravindra Chavan, son of Vasantrao Chavan.
BJP for fresh face
Congressman Ashok Chavan, the former chief minister and Congress leader, had joined the BJP nearly three months before the May defeat of incumbent MLA Chikhalikar. Though Ashok Chavan spearheaded the BJP campaign during the Lok Sabha election, Chikhalikar lost out due to the consolidation of Maratha votes behind the opposition alliance.

Though Chikhalikar was keen to contest the bypoll also, he was denied a ticket as party leaders and MLAs, including Ashok Chavan opposed him. Ashok Chavan was also personally summoned to contest but he declined, thereby giving an impression that the seat was not 'safe'. However, the local BJP leaders are of the opinion that Hambarde has good prospects.

He has very strong presence in the urban areas of the district through his educational institutions. He is a fresh face and the decision of not renominating former MP Chikhalikar will work in our favour," said a local BJP leader. The political atmosphere in the state, especially in Marathwada, had changed since the Lok Sabha polls in May due to corrective measures taken by the party and the state government, the leader noted.

"Recent rallies by prime minister Narendra Modi, deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis and their announcements for Marathwada will also work in our favour in the bypoll," said the leader .
Cong banks on former MP's son

Meanwhile, it has much to expect from its sympathy card with the son of the deceased MP, Ravindra Chavan, who besides this parliamentary constituency also manages educational institutes in the district and enjoys good rapport among the voters. He was confident of winning as all Congress has managed to bag all the six assembly segments under the Nanded Lok Sabha constituency as part of its seat-sharing deal with allies in the Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA).

We have socially engineered by inducting representation of all sections of the society. Not only Marathas, but OBCs and other sections are also with us. Mahayuti is fully infested with rebellions. With BJP fielding Hambarde instead of Chikhalikar, the contest has become easier for me, Ravindra Chavan told News Agency.