Even before the schedule for Maharashtra Assembly elections is officially announced, Prakash Ambedkar-led Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA) on Saturday declared the first list of candidates.
VBA has become the first political party to officially announce candidates for the 288-member state assembly where polls are likely to be held in the month of November.
Along with 11 VBA candidates, Prakash Ambedkar also announced the names of two candidates from VBA’s alliance partners.
The party has declared candidates for Raver, Sindkhed Raja, Washim, Dhamangaon, Nagpur South West, Sakoli, Nanded South, Loha, Aurangabad East, Shevgaon and Khanapur constituencies.
Two women candidates — Savita Mundhe from Sindkhed Raja and Megha Kiran Dongare from Washim, and a Muslim candidate — Farooq Ahmad from Nanded South seat, have been announced.
The first list also includes the name of a transgender rights activist Shamibha Patil from Raver constituency.
Further, VBA also announced candidature of Sunil Gaikwad from Bharat Adivasi Party (BAP) and Harish Uike from Gondwana Gantantra Party (GGP).
Gaikwad and Uke, the candidates from VBA alliance partners, will be contesting from Chopda (ST) and Ramtek seats, respectively.
“Staying true to our sacred ideology, we have given representation to the deprived, Bahujan groups with the aim of gaining true representation and political power, and breaking the hegemony of families of certain castes,” said Prakash Ambedkar in a statement.
“After failing to man-make the riots between OBC-Maratha, mainstream parties have resorted to the old and tested method of Hindu-Muslim divide. The silence of the mainstream parties should be questioned,” Ambedkar added.
The party chief said that they are in touch with prominent political parties and more names will be announced.
Before 2024 Lok Sabha elections, VBA was part of the INDIA grouping. However, VBA walked out of the opposition bloc as talks on seat-sharing failed. The VBA fielded candidates, but failed to make any impact, except making some dent in five seats. However, in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, VBA played spoilsport for Congress-NCP on 13 seats where it received nearly a lakh votes.
Meanwhile, leaders of both Maha Vikas Aghadi (Congress, Sena UBT and NCP-SP) and Mahayuti (BJP, Shiv Sena and Ajit Pawar-led NCP) said that formula on distribution of seats between alliance partners will be finalised soon.