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Rediff.com  » News » Maharashtra: Poonam Mahajan to contest from Ghatkopar (W)

Maharashtra: Poonam Mahajan to contest from Ghatkopar (W)

Source: ANI
Last updated on: September 19, 2009 22:02 IST
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Late Bharatiya Janata Party leader Pramod Mahajan's daughter Poonam figures in the first list of 66 party candidates for coming assembly elections in Maharashtra announced on Saturday.

Poonam Mahajan will contest from Ghatkopar West assembly seat in Mumbai.

The party said while 23 sitting MLAs have been renominated, nine sitting legislators were denied ticket due to delimitation and "other reasons". One sitting MLC also figures in the candidates' list.

The first list consists of names of two women, six Schedule Caste and nine Schedule Tribe candidates.

While BJP state unit president Nitin Ghadkari is not contesting the elections, the party has fielded its former state president Sambhajirao Pawar from Sangli assembly seat.

34-year-old Jalil Ansari is the only Muslim candidate in the list and he has been fielded from Malegaon (Central). Malegaon was in the news after a series of blasts had rocked the city in September, 2006, killing 37 people.

Sadhvi Pragya Thakur, Lt Col Srikant Purohit and some activists of right wing group Abhinav Bharat have been accused of involvement in the blasts.

Asked why BJP is fielding Ansari, party general secretary Gopinath Munde said he is an old party worker from the area and it was appropriate to give him a ticket.

Other prominent leaders fielded by BJP are former state Finance Minister and leader of BJP in legislative assembly Eknath Khadse (Muktainagar), BJP youth wing vice-president Devendra Phaddanvis (Nagpur South West) and former NCP MP Shivajirao Kardile (Rahuri).

The BJP will contest 119 seats while its ally Shiv Sena is contesting 169 seats in the polls. It i
s contesting on two more seats this time. In the last assembly elections, Shiv Sena had given 117 seats to the party.

The party
is likely to come out with its second list of candidates on September 21.

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Source: ANI
 
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