Kolhapur MLA, Mum leader quit Cong after being denied tkts

Mumbai: The Congress party on Thursday received a jolt as two of its leaders from Mumbai and Kolhapur joined parties that are part of the ruling Mahayuti alliance. Both were upset with the Congress for being denied tickets to contest the upcoming assembly polls.
Jayashree Jadhav, the sitting MLA from Kolhapur North, joined the Shiv Sena in the presence of party chief and chief minister Eknath Shinde while former opposition leader in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) Ravi Raja joined the BJP in the presence of deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis and the party’s Mumbai chief Ashish Shelar. Jadhav was subsequently appointed as the deputy leader and Kolhapur district women wing’s chief of Shiv Sena while Raja was appointed as the vice president of Mumbai BJP.
Jadhav, who was elected to the assembly in a by-election following her husband’s death in 2022, said though she had worked for the Kolhapur North constituency for the past two years, the Congress denied her renomination.
“I will strive to increase Shiv Sena’s presence in Kolhapur district,” said Jadhav, who joined the Sena with her son Satyajit Jadhav. She will make efforts to reach out to women voters regarding welfare schemes like Ladki Bahin Yojana, Lakhpati Didi and Drone Didi, said chief minister Shinde.
Raja too expressed disappointment with the Congress after joining the BJP, saying the grand old party does not give tickets based on merit.
“Since 1980, as a Youth Congress member, I have served the party with utmost sincerity and dedication and today I am made to believe that my 44 years of service for the Congress party is not respected and hence I take this decision of resigning from my party post,” he wrote in his resignation letter posted on social media platform X.
The five-time corporator was keen on contesting from the Sion-Koliwada constituency, where he lost the two previous elections. This time, the Congress wanted to field a fresh face and nominated Ganesh Yadav, said a Congress leader.
Raja, however, claimed that favouritism was at work behind him being denied a ticket.
“I have fought from the Sion Koliwada constituency five times before. Now you see that the person who has been there for 25 years, that person has not gotten a ticket and the person who has been just a member for the past four months that person has gotten a ticket, esa pata chalta hai ki bedh bhav hai (it shows that there is favouritism). It looks like only one family is responsible for giving out tickets,” he told reporters. “I believe that they don’t give tickets on the basis of merit, so sometimes people rebel,” he added.
Raja also vowed to get Mahayuti candidates elected from constituencies in Mumbai, saying, “I don’t have any expectations, and today they saw my experience and Ashish Shelar announced me as the Vice President of the BJP Mumbai unit.”
Following his exit, Mumbai Congress president Varsha Gaikwad expressed disappointment, saying the party had given Raja substantial support and that he should have remained loyal.
“We had a discussion with him two days ago; he even came to meet us with several leaders present. He promised he was with us and that he was a Congressman. But suddenly, he made a different decision,” said Gaikwad.
Raja was promised a role if the Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi, of which the Congress is a part, came to power, Gaikwad noted, adding that he should have stayed with the party. “Now that he’s gone, I hope he finds happiness,” she said.