Parties out with names for first citizen8217;s post

PUNE, March 16: Confusion and sharp differences prevailed in the civic corridors today with major political parties fielding their candid...

PUNE, March 16: Confusion and sharp differences prevailed in the civic corridors today with major political parties fielding their candidates for the posts of mayor and deputy mayor.

Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi MVA, which has reportedly made a committment to Deputy Chief Minister Gopinath Munde during the standing committee chairman8217;s polls that they would support the BJP candidate has fielded Datta Gaikwad. BJP has nominated senior corporator Vijay Kale while Congress candidae Anil Bhosale is also in the fray. Republican Party of India RPI corporator Avinash Salve has also filed his nomination paper. Shiv Sena corporator Deepak Gawde is also in the fray.

For the post of deputy mayor also, all the parties have fielded their candidates. They are Alka Patil Congress, Jyotsna Sardeshpande BJP, Mahadeo Babar Shiv Sena and Sayyed Afsar RPI. Cracks in the MVA came to the fore when its founder Suresh Kalmadi asked both Anjani Nimhan and Narayan Chavan to file the nomination papers. MVA leader Chandrakant Chhajed told media persons both Chavan and Nimhan were the official candidates till the final decision was taken by Kalmadi.

The candidature of Vijay Kale was finalised after hectic lobbying in the BJP camp. Sources said Deputy Chief Minister Gopinath Munde was pressing for the candidature of Anil Shirole opposed by the local leaders. The sources said senior party leader Pramod Mahajan intervened in the matter. The candidature of Kale was finalised after he reportedly assured that he would resign from the post of chairman of Pune Housing Area Development Authority.

The Congress card committee at its meeting authorised leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha Sharad Pawar to decided the candidate. Pawar this morning conveyed Anil Bhosale8217;s name to Vitthal Tupe. Bhosale is close to Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee president Prataprao Bhosale. Subrao Kadam and Sanjay Balgude also figured in the discussion.

BJP leader Suhas Kulkarni told media persons his party leaders would have a meeting with Sena leaders before the mayoral election. Both Kulkarni and Shiv Sena leader Ramesh Bodke denied that they had some differences over the sharing of the posts. Kulkarni said BJP-Sena and MVA leaders were expected to meet tomorrow after the arrival of Kalmadi from Delhi.