No Congress support to party MLC Sudhir Tambe's son in Council polls: MPCC chief Patole

Maharashtra Congress president Nana Patole on Friday said the party will not support independent candidate Satyajit Tambe in the biennial Legislative Council polls, a day after the latter filed nomination when his father and senior legislator Sudhir Tambe opted out of fray, leaving the party red-faced.

Patole told reporters in Nagpur that Sudhir Tambe, the outgoing MLC from the Nashik division graduates constituency, ''cheated'' the Congress by not filing nomination from the seat as he was the party's official candidate.

''The Congress will not support Satyajit Tambe's candidature and the future course of action will be decided after discussion with the leadership,'' he said.

The Congress was left red-faced on Thursday, the last day for filing nominations for the January 30 MLC polls, when Sudhir Tambe, the party's official candidate and a three-time MLC, withdrew from the fray and announced his son would fight the polls.

Thereafter, Satyajit Tambe, a Youth Congress leader, filed nomination as an independent candidate from the constituency and immediately sought support from the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Senior Congress leaders and former chief ministers Prithviraj Chavan and Ashok Chavan said the party is left with no candidate in the Nashik division graduates seat after the political somersault by the senior Tambe.

Ashok Chavan said the last minute twist in candidature for the Council polls from the constituency involving the father-son duo was a serious issue and a loss to the party.

He said his colleague and former state minister Balasaheb Thorat, who is the brother-in-law of three-time MLC Sudhir Tambe, would have ''additional information'' on the chain of events which culminated in Satyajit Tambe filing nomination as an independent candidate.

Sudhir Tambe had been representing the Nashik division graduates' constituency in the Upper House of the legislature for the last three terms (18 years) and was re-nominated by the party from the seat for a fresh term.

Elections to graduates and teachers constituencies of the Legislative Council will be held on January 30, while results will be declared on February 2. Graduates and teachers enrolled as electors are eligible to vote in the biennial polls.

Speaking to Marathi news channel ABP Majha in his hometown Nanded, former CM Ashok Chavan said, ''Satyajit Tambe filing nomination as an independent is a serious issue. The person (Sudhir Tambe) who was asked to file nomination did not do so and, instead, his son is fighting the polls. It is a loss to the Congress.'' Ashok Chavan said Sudhir Tambe could have given a blank 'AB' form (allotted to official candidate of a party) to his son if he did not wish to contest. Instead, the junior Tambe ended up filing nomination as independent.

''This issue belongs to the home district of Balasaheb Thorat (Ahmednagar which comes under Nashik division). He might have additional information. The party must take cognisance because it has lost one seat,'' he added.

The former CM evaded a direct reply when asked if Thorat, a former Maharashtra Congress chief, was disgruntled.

''I cannot say so. He is ill and has a shoulder injury. I cannot come to any conclusion,'' Ashok Chavan said.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)