Mahajan, Samant fail to convince rebel Gokul Gite to pull out of Nashik MLC poll fray

Nashik: Water resources development minister Girish Mahajan and industries minister Uday Samant on Friday failed to convince BJP rebel Gokul Gite to withdraw from the Nashik MLC election. Gite, who is contesting against Mahayuti’s official nominee Narendra Darade of Shiv Sena, made it clear that he had no intention of stepping aside.Mahajan and Samant spent the day in Nashik holding meetings with party office bearers and local functionaries to strategise for the election. Darade, the sitting MLC whose term is nearing completion, has been renominated by Shiv Sena under Mahayuti for the Nashik MLC seat. With Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) not fielding a candidate, the contest has effectively turned into a direct fight, with Gite stepping in to fill the space.Gite and his brother Ganesh, a former chairman of the Nashik Municipal Corporation standing committee, represent a prominent BJP faction in the region.Speaking with the media, Gokul Gite said he had not received any official communication urging him to step down. He dismissed the possibility of extending support to another candidate, saying such a move was “out of the question. "This is not a gram panchayat election where I can just suddenly announce my withdrawal. I am contesting this election against an inactive candidate,” he said, while expressing surprise over immense pressure on him to step down for someone he believed was underperforming.Mahajan acknowledged that discussions had been initiated but admitted that no breakthrough had been achieved so far. “I spoke to Gokul yesterday and Ganesh met me this morning. As of now, we haven’t found a solution, but we remain hopeful that things will change in favour of the Mahayuti candidate,” he said.He said a face-to-face meeting with Gokul could not take place as he was occupied with the World Environment Day events, while Gokul had left the city later in the day.Samant, addressing the media in the evening, struck a more hopeful tone. He said he had spoken to Gokul over the phone and clarified that there was no pressure being applied. “There is no pressure from our side. I am merely executing what my party leadership expects of me. So, I called him up to request his support for our candidate,” Samant said.