Holding the banner of revolt, city NCP president Ashok Dhawad on Wednesday announced that he would file nomination papers from Nagpur
South constituency on Thursday. This follows massive protest in the NCP cadres over non-allotment of even one of the six seats from Nagpur city to NCP by its ally - the Congress. All NCP city office-bearers resigned en masse in protest and later locked up the party office on Wednesday.
"My office was locked and I could not work from there. While attempting to pacify my party workers I realised that they were in no mood to accept the slight. They pressured me to contest the elections as an Independent. I had to bow before their sentiments," Dhawad told TOI explaining his decision to contest against alliance NCP-Congress candidate Dinanath Padole from Nagpur South.
Dhawad had been elected from Nagpur South in 1990 as a Congress candidate. Once a close confidant of city MP Vilas Muttemwar, Dhawad made his mark as youth leader then. After he fell out with Muttemwar, he had to go through political wilderness for some time and joined the NCP only couple of years ago. Dhawad took over as the city NCP chief from ex-MLC Girish Gandhi last year.