Will the “Vishal” Rebellion of the Sangli Congress Leader Affect Sena UBT & MVA in the Maharashtra Lok Sabha Elections?

The opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi, which is made up of the Congress, the Nationalist Congress Party (Sharad Pawar), and the Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray), is having trouble with the Sangli Lok Sabha Seat.

Congress and Sena UBT have been battling it out for a seat ever since the MVA’s seat-sharing negotiations began on Day One. Sangli has been claimed by the grand old party, which refers to it as their “traditional” seat. Sena UBT said that because they had gained support in western Maharashtra and have been losing seats in the last two elections, they ought to win. This seat was the subject of discussion until last week. Congress President’s assistance was even sought for by local authorities. Sangli finally transferred to Sena UBT when the MVA revealed its seat-sharing plan on Gudi Padwa.

“DISAPPOINTED” VISHAL PATIL
Vishal Patil, the grandson of former Maharashtra chief minister Vasantdada Patil, submitted his candidacy as an Independent for the Sangli seat when the parties were at peace.

Patil ran for the Lok Sabha seat in 2019 on behalf of Raju Shetti’s “Swabhimani Party.” Gopichand Padalkar, the candidate for the Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA), received more over 3 lakh votes, about 2 lakh more than he did.

Since then, Patil has been getting ready for the election. He will now run against Chandrahar Patil of MVA and Sanjay Kaka Patil of the BJP-Shinde Sena-NCP Ajit Pawar Mahayuti.

Despite the Congress’s last-minute backing for Patil, they were compelled to surrender by high command instructions. Leaders MLAs Vikram Sawant and Vishwajeet Kadam endorse Patil. It will be fascinating to see how the local authorities respond to his decision to run as an independent and if they can persuade him not to run.

CONGRESS REJECTED THE OPTION FOR A “FRIENDLY FIGHT”
As the battle raged, Uddhav Thackeray declared Chandrahar Patil’s candidacy for the seat without first contacting the other alliance members. The local Congress leaders were prompted by this to propose that they engage in a friendly skirmish with the Sena UBT in Sangli. The Congress High Command rejected this alternative on the grounds that it would further splinter the alliance and other leaders will make similar demands, which will have an impact on the alliance as a whole. However, Patil’s uprising resulted from the local leadership’s disapproval of this choice.

OUR CONSTITUENCY
The Miraj, Sangli, Palus-Kadegaon, Khanapur, Tasagaon-Kavthe Mahankal, and Jat Vidhan Sabha constituencies make up the Sangli Lok Sabha constituency. Both Sangli and Miraj are members of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Palus-Kadegaon is in the Congress, as is Jat. Anil Babar, the head of the Shiv Sena, passed away, leaving Khanapur empty and Tasagaon-Kavthe Mahankal with the NCP. Patil believes he has an advantage because of Congress and NCP votes.

It is unclear whether Sena UBT will prevail in the seat or if MVA will lose to the BJP for a third time in a row as a result of Patil cutting into its support.