Congress' sitting MLA Anees Ahmed has caused double trouble for his party by deserting his Nagpur Central seat and shifting to Nagpur
West for the October 13 assembly elections. While the party had to field a new candidate from Central Nagpur, there are doubts on whether Ahmed would be accepted in his new constituency. More so, because the reasons for his shifting, despite winning the seat for two consecutive terms, are not convincing.
An unassuming orthopaedic surgeon who runs a private hospital on the busy Central Avenue, Dr Ramchandra (Raju) Deoghare, is now the fresh Congress face from the Central seat. While the good doctor has been associated with the party for over a decade, the fact that his father, Narendra Deoghare, was elected city MP and also MLA from Nagpur East is what really worked in his favour. "This is my first election but I have always been actively involved in party activity and even worked as vice-president of city unit. I hail from a freedom fighter family and balance my profession with social work. Party president Sonia Gandhi has rewarded me as my family has stood by the party through thick and thin," said Dr Deoghare.
But then, election is a different cup of tea, especially in this constituency, where caste matters most. Muslims and Halba-Koshtis, who are weavers by occupation, are the ones who decide the poll outcome here. While Muslims number around 72,000, Halbas are around 85,000. Deoghare, a Halba, has to bank on the community support. But the BJP has also played the Halba card by nominating Vikas Kumbhare from the same community. And there are more candidates from the same community, including Nanda Parate of Adim party (Independent), Kishore Parate of Maharashtra Navnirman Sena and Kanta Parate (Independent). In the past, there is the instance of a Halba candidate Yeshwant Bajirao (contesting on Janata Dal ticket) defeating Congress' Anees Ahmed by a slender margin.
So, even if the caste vote has many claimants, Deoghare has to contend with BJP rival Vikas Kumbhare who is no pushover, having contested from the same seat in the past. The Congress nominee also faces the problem of rebel candidates. A known leader from the co-operative sector, Ravindra Durugkar, who was denied the Congress ticket, is in the fray as an independent candidate. He is related to city MP Vilas Muttemwar who has helped Deoghare in getting the ticket. A NCP rebel Shabbir Vidrohi is also contesting and the two may split the secular vote. With no candidate from their community, Muslims may not show much enthusiasm on the voting day. Neither the Congress nor the BJP have a clear edge here.