Maharashtra civic polls: Who is Amol Balwadkar? Ex-BJP leader joins Ajit Pawar’s NCP after ticket denial

PUNE: Former BJP corporator Amol Balwadkar joined the Nationalist Congress Party after the BJP denied him a ticket at the last moment. The NCP immediately announced Balwadkar as its candidate, adding a new twist to the civic election battle in Pune.Balwadkar had earlier contested the Assembly elections and emerged as an internal challenger to Higher and Technical Education Minister Chandrakant Patil. His aggressive campaign during that period is believed to have caused unease within the BJP. After the elections, Balwadkar was kept out of active politics for some time but was later brought back into the party after Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis intervened. However, old differences appear to have resurfaced during the distribution of tickets for the PMC elections. With just about an hour left for filing nominations, the BJP denied Balwadkar a ticket and instead named Kothrud North Mandal president Lahu Balwadkar as its candidate. This decision led to fresh discontent among party workers.Soon after being dropped, Amol Balwadkar met Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar and formally joined the NCP.“I worked for 10 years and was betrayed. If they had spoken to me with respect, I would have stayed even now. But now this will be a do-or-die fight,” said Amol Balwadkar.In Ward number 9, covering Sus, Baner, and Pashan, the BJP kept its candidate selection unclear until the last moment. The party finally chose new faces in Wards 8 and 9, leaving out former corporators. These developments have highlighted internal differences within the BJP and have made the PMC election contest in Pune more competitive.