Maharashtra: Sharad Pawar's NCP declares five more candidates, ups its tally to 87

The Sharad Pawar-led Nationalist Congress Party (NCP-SP) on Tuesday announced five additional candidates for the upcoming Maharashtra Assembly elections, bringing its total to 87. The announcement follows the release of the party's fourth list on Monday, which included seven candidates for the November 20 elections.

In a notable move, the NCP replaced sitting MLA Anil Deshmukh with his son Salil Deshmukh as its candidate from the Katol constituency in Nagpur district. The latest list also swapped Siddhi Ramesh Kadam with Raju Khare for the Mohol seat in Solapur district, following opposition from locals who objected to Kadam’s nomination, citing that she does not belong to the constituency.

The new candidates announced include Abhijit Patil for Madha and Anil Sawant for Pandharpur, both in Solapur district. Girish Karale has been fielded from the Morshi constituency in Amravati district, while Sangeeta Waje will contest from the Mulund seat in Mumbai.

The NCP (SP) is contesting as part of the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance, which comprises Uddhav Thackeray's Shiv Sena and Congress. The Congress has announced candidates for 102 seats, while Sena (UBT) has fielded 85 candidates.

Elections for Maharashtra's 288-member Assembly will be held on November 20.