“Chhatrapatis” unite in the Maha royal contest

The esteemed Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj has not been immune to the intensely polarised politics of Maharashtra. Since it is so similar to the Maratha honor, the epithet “Chhatrapati” has been passed down through the ages. Thus, Udayan Raje Bhosale, who has assumed the BJP’s historic Satara Lok Sabha seat, is the 17th title bearer in the lineage. And then there is Chhatrapati Shahu Maharaj, the thirteenth descendant of the royal line, who is vying with the Congress for the Kolhapur seat. Twelve seats are up for grabs in the third round of the Lok Sabha elections, which is scheduled on May 7. Among them are Kolhapur and Satara.

 

A walk along the royal hallway first: According to Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj’s family tree, power was shared among his three families: his son Sambhaji Raje, whose center of power was Satara, Shivaji Maharaj’s capital; Rajaram Maharaj, who continues to reside in Kolhapur and is succeeded by Chhatrapati Shahu Maharaj. The third was continued by Venkoji Bhosale and his extended family in Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu.

In Satara, Udayan Raje Bhosale is up against the formidable Mathadi workers’ union, which is led by Shashikant Shinde, a candidate from the NCP party lead by Sharad Pawar. Currently, Bhosale represents the BJP in the Rajya Sabha. In the 2019 Lok Sabha by-election, he was defeated by Sriniwas Patil of the NCP. Bhosale was elected on the NCP ticket the same year, but he later resigned, joined the BJP, and lost the by-election to Sriniwas Patil of the NCP by a margin of more than 88,000 votes.

The assembly elections were held concurrently with the Satara Lok Sabha by-election. Because Bhosale thought he would ride the Modi wave, the fight became prestigious, but Sharad Pawar’s demagoguery changed the outcome. The leader of the NCP really apologized for backing Bhosale and demanded that he be removed from office. It did really occur. But Pawar’s Satara strategy resulted in the annihilation of his party. In the best case scenario, the poll increased the Congress’s already slim chances of winning 44 seats in the 288-member legislature.

The announcement of the BJP’s candidate for the Satara elections was postponed. In order to get his nomination, Bhosale traveled to Delhi and spoke with Home Minister Amit Shah. With a sanctimonious lament that the royal scion was forced to wait, an affront to the royal throne, the opposition chastised the BJP for delaying the ticket announcement.

Shashikant Shinde, the NCP candidate (Sharad Pawar), said that he was the target of fabricated complaints meant to obstruct his campaign. He vows allegiance to Pawar and declares he will not yield to BJP pressure.

However, despite receiving nomination offers from both the NCP (SP) and Shiv Sena (UBT), 78-year-old Chhatrapati Shahu Maharaj—the 13th descendant of Shivaji Maharaj—has decided to run for office on the Congress ticket. Supporter of the secular and progressive philosophy of Shah-Phule-Ambedkar, Shahu Maharaj is up against Sena candidate Sanjay Mandlik, who is led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, in the Kolhapur election.

Chatrapati Sambhaji Raje, the son of Sahu Maharaj, who ran for the Kolhapur Lok Sabha seat on the NCP ticket, was beaten by Sadhashiv Mandlik in the 2009 election. Sanjay Mandalik, the son of Sadhashiv, is now taking on Sambhaji Maharaj’s father Shahu Maharaj.

For both seats, the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi has maintained a distinct campaign stance. Sharad Pawar said that while people in Satara do honor Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj’s throne, they should support the ordinary guy by voting for him because he would stick by and serve the people. On the other hand, the BJP claims that only the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj throne would get respect and votes. The Kolhapur MVA fights to preserve Shahu-Phule-Ambedkar’s heritage.

Satej Patil, a former minister and chairman of the Congress campaign in Kolhapur, expressed confidence in Shahu Maharaj’s win. “Chhatrapati Shahu Maharaj’s candidature has received positive feedback from all communities,” he said.

“This election is not like the others. The secular and progressive philosophy of Shahu-Phule-Ambedkar is what we are fighting for. In these trying times, Shahu Maharaj is a real leader, continuing this heritage. The BJP is scaring the public and abusing its authority. But we’ll beat all the odds,” Patil said.