NCP’s Shilpa Khot elected president of Kolhapur ZP unopposed, BJP’s Tanaji Patil vice-president

Kolhapur: NCP's Shilpa Shashikant Khot and BJP's Tanaji Patil were elected unopposed as president and vice-president, respectively, of the Kolhapur Zilla Parishad on Tuesday after Congress candidates withdrew from the race at the last moment.The president's post, reserved for a woman from the open category for the first two-and-a-half years of the five-year term, had been a key point of discussion among Mahayuti partners. With 51 seats in the newly elected ZP, the alliance had decided to distribute major posts among its constituents. As the single largest party with 20 seats, NCP held a strong claim to the top post, despite BJP's aspirations.On Tuesday morning, senior NCP leader and medical education minister Hasan Mushrif proposed the name of Shilpa Khot, the member from Senapati Kapshi division. Mahayuti members were kept together at a hotel in Panhala ahead of the election. BJP, meanwhile, put forth the name of Mudshingi member Tanaji Patil for the vice-president's post. Both candidates filed their nominations before district collector and election officer Amol Yedge.When the members assembled in the ZP hall at 2pm, Congress had also fielded candidates for both posts. NCP member Sangramsinha Kupekar appealed to Congress to withdraw, following which the party consulted MLC Satej Patil. Acting on his direction, candidates Rasika Patil and Sambhaji Patankar withdrew their nominations. After the 15-minute withdrawal window, Yedge declared Khot and Patil elected unopposed.Khot thanked Mushrif for the faith he placed in her, while Patil assured transparent functioning of the administration and fair delivery of services to citizens. A staunch supporter of Mushrif, Khot hails from Senapati Kapshi in Kagal, the constituency represented by Mushrif in the assembly. With this, key positions across major district institutions are now concentrated in Kagal tehsil, with Mushrif chairing the district central cooperative bank, his son Navid heading Gokul dairy and Khot now assuming the ZP presidency.