Activist Manoj Jarange may have decided not to field candidates in the upcoming Maharashtra polls but continues to make the Bharatiya Janata Party nervous in Jalna district, the epicentre of Maratha agitation, political observers have said.
The BJP had won three key constituencies -- Bhokardan, Partur and Badnapur -- in the district in 2019 and is trying to retain them, although the political and social landscapes there have seen tectonic shifts, they said.
The party has renominated two-term MLA Santosh Danve, son of former Union minister Raosaheb Danve, from Bhokardan, Babanrao Lonikar in Partur and Narayan Kuche in Badnapur constituencies.
However, in the past five years, while Shiv Sena and Nationalist Congress Party have split, Jalna has seen massive protests by the Maratha community led by Jarange demanding reservation in education and government jobs.
Jarange has repeatedly targeted the BJP warning that the community would defeat its candidates in the assembly polls, which will be held on November 20.
He, however, recently decided not to field candidates in the polls.
Marathas comprise about 32 percent of the population in the district, a part of the state's Marathwada region with 46 assembly segments.
BJP's ally Shiv Sena, led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, has fielded candidates in the Ghanswangi and Jalna seats in the district.
In Bhokardan, where 32 candidates are in the fray, the main contest is between Santosh Danve and NCP-Sharadchandra Pawar candidate Chandrakant Danve, a three-term MLA.
Union ex-minister Raosaheb Danve lost from Jalna in the Lok Sabha elections earlier this year, with political observers pointing to the Jarange factor.
Santosh Danve had defeated Chandrakant Danve by 32,000 votes last time.
In Partur, two-time MLA and former minister Babanrao Lonikar faces Shiv Sena-Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray candidate Asaram Borade and Congress rebel Suresh Jethliya.
Jethliya, the former head of the Partur Municipal Council, enjoys local support.
While the division of votes between Borade and Jethliya might help Lonikar, the Maratha and Banjara communities are likely to play a pivotal role in deciding the winner in Partur constituency, said a political observer.
In the reserved constituency of Badnapur, two-time MLA Narayan Kuche faces off against Roopkumar Bablu Choudhari of the NCP-SP.
The Maratha votes could have a significant impact on the outcome in Jalna as many from the community have voiced dissatisfaction with Kuche.
Senior journalist Avinash Kavhale said the Maratha community is upset with the BJP, holding it responsible for failing to secure quota for them.
Kavhale said Jarange had repeatedly urged the community to “teach a lesson” to those who have opposed the Maratha reservation.
