Ranjitsinh joins BJP in presence of CM Fadnavis

Mumbai: Another Congress leader Ranjitsinh Naik-Nimbalkar on Monday joined the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) in presence of the state chief minister Devendra Fadnavis. He will contest the Lok Sabha election from Madha constituency, from where National Congress President chief Sharad Pawar was to contest but later stepped back.

Mr Nimbalkar is the son of senior Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Vijaysinh Mohite Patil, who is NCP’s Lok Sabha member from Madha constituency and a former deputy CM of Maharashtra. Mr Nimbalkar is the fifth candidate from opposition parties to join BJP ahead of elections. He has good following and supporters in Madh, which will help BJP strengthen its base in the constituency, according to political analysts.

According to reports, Mr Nimbalkar left the Congress party owing to internal disputes. There are also speculations that Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil sent his resignation as LOP to Congress president Rahul Gandhi on moral grounds. He had also expressed his displeasure over the Congress party’s delay in announcing candidate for Madh constituency.