Nagpur, 30 Dec

(HS): With the last date for filing nominations for the municipal corporation

elections, many of the aspirants for party tickets and the voters as well are grappling

in the dark. The required AB forms are expected to be given on Tuesday morning.

Fearing revolt,

the parties had kept declaring many official candidates till late Monday

evening. A meeting of Bharatiya Janata Party and Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde) leaders

continued till midnight on Monday. Shiv Sena was given eight seats in the Nagpur

Municipal Corporation. The Nationalist Congress Party (Ajit Pawar) decided to

contest independently.

The nomination

forms will be available till 2 pm and deadline for filing it is 3 pm on

Tuesday. Heavy rush is expected at all the ten zonal offices of NMC.

BJP has fielded

many new faces leaving aside the established workers, including some former

corporators. The AB forms were distributed from Union Minister Nitin Gadkari’s

office. A large number of aspirants were seen queuing up at his office on

Monday. Many others had tried to convince Revenue Minister Chandrashekhar

Bawankule for the party tickets.

CONGRESS: Congress

leaders were also finalising strategy for the elections till late Monday

morning. Congress too delayed declaring list of all the candidates till Monday

evening. On Tuesday the candidates will be issued AB forms directly. The names

of more than 100 candidates were finalised till Monday late night.

A large number

of aspirants are expected to file nominations as independents as a rebellion.

They will have to contest against their party’s official candidates.

It seems that

the state-level alliances of Magayuti of BJP-Shiv Sena-NCP (AP); and Maha-Vikas

Aghadi (MVA) of Congress-UBT-NCP (SP) area meaningless in local body elections.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Ajay Vasant Mardikar