Congress Prepares for Legislative Council Elections in Maharashtra

The Congress will contest two out of four Legislative Council constituencies for graduates and teachers in Maharashtra. Names of candidates will be announced on June 2, with nominations closing on June 7. Voting is set for June 26, and results will be declared on July 1.

The Congress will contest elections for two of the four Legislative Council constituencies earmarked for graduates and teachers, Maharashtra unit president Nana Patole said on Wednesday.

He said the names of the candidates and the constituencies will be announced on June 2.

The biennial elections to four legislative council seats- Mumbai Graduates constituency, Konkan Graduates Constituency, Mumbai Teachers constituency and Nashik Teachers constituency- became necessary as the terms of sitting members are expiring in July.

The last date for filing the nominations is June 7. Voting will be held on June 26 and results will be declared on July 1.

Speaking to reporters after chairing a meeting of Congress leaders, Patole said Shiv Sena (UBT) has declared candidates for the Mumbai Graduates and the Mumbai Teachers constituencies.

''We have also decided to contest on two seats, the names of which will be announced on June 2,'' he said.

Notably, the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena, a member of Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA), last week named MLC Anil Parab and party functionary J M Abhyankar as its candidates for the Mumbai Graduates and Mumbai Teachers constituencies.

While Shiv Sena (UBT) and Congress decided to contest the MLC elections, the stand of the Sharad Pawar-led NCP (SP) on fielding candidates is not known Out of 78 seats in the Legislative Council, Shiv Sena (undivided) has 11 members, NCP (undivided) 9, Congress 8, and BJP 22. The JD (U), Peasants and Workers Party, and Rashtriya Samaj Paksha have one member each, while four are Independents. 21 seats are vacant.

The vacant seats include 12 members to be nominated by the Governor and nine selected through local body representatives.

Separately, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena has declared a candidate for the Konkan Graduates constituency. The NCP led by Ajit Pawar, which is a constituent of the ruling Mahayuti alliance of Shiv Sena led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and BJP, has declared its nominee for the Mumbai Teachers constituency.