In a big blow to the NCP(Nationalist Congress Party) in Maharashtra, Ranjitsinh Mohite Patil a former Rajya Sabha Member and son of senior leader Vijaysinh Mohite Patil joins the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party(BJP).
Mumbai: Former NCP MP Ranjitsinh Mohite Patil joins BJP; says, "Whatever party decides, I will be doing it." #Maharashtra pic.twitter.com/cyJvaJHv0G
— ANI (@ANI) March 20, 2019
His reason of quitting the NCP, according to him is because a water project launched by his father was allegedly ignored by the previous Congress-NCP government.
Also, it is speculated that the BJP is in an attempt to draw Vijaysinh Mohite Patil in its flock.
On Wednesday, Maharashtra CM, Devendra Fadnavis, while addressing BJP workers in a rally told them that Ranjitsinh Mohite Patil joined the BJP with his father’s blessings and talks are on with Vijaysinh Mohite Patil now.
In 2014, Vijaysinh Mohite Patil won the Madha seat by over 35, 000 votes, even at the peak of the Modi wave.
A party leader of the NCP said that the decision of Ranjitsinh Mohite Patil to shift to the BJP is not going to effect them. Further said that only Ranjitsinh Mohite Patil knows why he switched the party.
However, Ranjitsinh Mohite Patil, the former Rajya Sabha member said that he left the party because a water project launched by his father was ignored by the Congress-NCP government and the project took its pace only under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi , Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis and Union Minister Nitin Gadkari.
Last week, Sujay Vikhe Singh, a top Congress leader’s son joined the Bharatiya Janata Party.
The NCP is the only key partner the Congress has in Maharashtra.
Also, the Congress-NCP alliance is likely to take a blow after Dalit leader Prakash Ambedkar‘s decision to go solo and the Samajwadi Party-Bahujan Samajwadi Party’s combined rejection of its invitation to join hands for the polls.
The Muslims and the Scheduled Caste members comprise 26% of the total vote share in the state.
However, the Congress is considered to contest on 26 Lok Sabha seats, out of 48 seats in the state and the NCP is considered to contest on 22 seats.