Independent candidate for LS polls meets Maharashtra CM

Former Congress MLA Abdul Sattar, who is contesting the Lok Sabha election from Aurangabad in Maharashtra as an independent candidate, met Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis late Wednesday night, a BJP source said. State BJP president Raosaheb Danve took Sattar to meet Fadnavis, the source claimed.

Shiv Sena's Chandrakant Khaire is the candidate of the Sena-BJP alliance in Aurangabad. The saffron alliance is hoping that Sattar may split the sizable Muslim vote, which will help Khaire, the source said.

A Shiv Sena leader said that Khaire, a four-time MP, may face the anti-incumbency factor. "He will face a strong fight from All India Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul-Muslimeen (AIMIM) candidate Imtiyaz Jalil with the support of Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi led by Dalit leader Prakash Ambedkar," the Sena source said.

The Congress has given ticket to Subhash Jhambad, who is expected to garner the support of the trader community, he said.