In a setback to the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) in Maharashtra, its Pandharpur leader Bhagirath Bhalke Sunday announced his decision to join the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) led by Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao. Speaking to media persons, Bhalke said, "I have decided to join the BRS. My decision to quit the NCP is following the party's failure to address the issues we had voiced in the last two years." Bhalke is the son of former NCP MLA Bharat Bhalke who died of post-Covid complications in 2020. In the bypoll that followed, the party fielded Bhalke as its official candidate for the Pandharpur Assembly seat. However, the BJP’s Samadhan Audate defeated him in the fiercely contested election. According to Bhagirath Bhalke, "I am grateful that the NCP fielded me in the bypoll after my father passed away, but there were other issues related to our followers and organisation. Those loyal to the late Bharat Bhalke were not happy with the party's treatment." He added that the decision to join the BRS was taken after adequate consultations with other leaders and his supporters.
