MLC Polls: NCP Red-faced as Party Nominee Karad Withdraws from Munde Turf

Mumbai, May 7 (PTI) The NCP suffered an embarrassment today as its official candidate Ramesh Karad, who recently quit the BJP, withdrew his nomination for Latur-Beed-Osmanabad local authority seat for the May 21 Maharashtra Legislative Council elections.

Karad went to the office of the Returning Officer of the Election Commission and withdrew his candidature.

With Karad backing out on the last day of withdrawal of nominations for the elections to six local authorities constituencies, the red-faced NCP today declared its support for the party worker Ashok Jagdale who had filed his nomination as an independent candidate.

Karad, a staunch supporter of BJP stalwart late Gopinath Munde, switched to the NCP a few days back, following which he was declared as the official nominee of the Sharad Pawar-led party for the MLC election.

According to sources, Karad's last minute withdrawal is considered as a political masterstroke by late Munde's daughter and state minister Pankaja Munde.

Pankaja is at loggerheads with her cousin and political rival Dhananjay Munde (NCP) who is said to be instrumental in weaning away Karad from the BJP fold.

The elections to the six local authorities seats became necessitated as three members of the NCP, two members of the BJP, and a Congress MLC are retiring on June 21.

Out of these six seats, three are currently held by the NCP, two by the BJP and one by the Congress.

Osmanabad-Latur-Beed local body seat is currently represented by the Congress' Dilip Deshmukh, the brother of late chief minister Vilasrao Deshmukh.

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