Nagpur, May 11 (PTI) Bharipa Bahujan Mahasabha leader Prakash Ambedkar today said that the NCP-Congress had fielded a weak candidate for the Bhandara-Gondia Lok Sabha bypoll scheduled for May 28.

The bypoll was necessitated by the resignation of BJP MP Nana Patole who then quit the party as well and joined the Congress.

Addressing a press conference, Ambedkar alleged that the Congress-NCP did not field Patole, a strong candidate, as several NCP and Congress leaders were facing inquiries.

He claimed that a weak candidate was chosen to give the BJP a cakewalk.

"Nana Patole is a strong leader who stood up to PM Narendra Modi. He would have been a giant killer if he had contested the elections," he said.

Ambedkar said that his party had fielded tribal leader L K Madavi for the bypoll in order to give the BJP a tough fight.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)