Pune: Potential Discord Within Thackeray Group as Dattatray Waghere Eyes Lok Sabha Seat Candidacy
Varad Bhatkhande
Pimpri Chinchwad, 19th April 2024: Former Mayor Sanjog Waghere has been announced as a candidate from the Maval Lok Sabha constituency. Meanwhile, Dattatray Waghere, former opposition leader of the Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC), has taken nomination forms from the Thackeray group. This has raised concerns about potential unrest within the Thackeray group.
The filing of nominations for the Maval Lok Sabha constituency began on Thursday, with applications being accepted from April 18 to 25. On the first day, 27 individuals collected a total of 47 candidacy applications, but none filed them. Sanjog Waghere, representing the Mahavikas Aghadi, will submit his nomination on April 23. At the same time, his close relative, Dattatray Waghere, who previously served as the opposition leader in the PCMC, has collected candidacy forms as an independent and from the Thackeray group, indicating potential discord within the group.
Dattatraya Waghere was formerly part of the Congress party and ran for municipal office with the Shiv Sena in 2017, though he was unsuccessful. After the Shiv Sena split, he remained aligned with the Thackeray faction. He expressed interest in running in the Lok Sabha elections, but his candidacy was not publicly requested. There have been reports that Dattatray Waghere was upset with Sanjog Waghere’s candidacy announcement, suggesting the possibility of dissent. This situation could further complicate matters for Sanjog.
Attempts to reach out to Sanjog Waghere for comments were unsuccessful. In addition, Rafiq Qureshi has also submitted his candidacy as a representative of the Bahujan Samaj Party.
