Maharashtra Elections: Sharad Pawar Leader Loses First Battle In Vadgaon Sheri Seat. Courtesy: A Namesake Candidate

Mumbai: Bapusaheb Tukaram Pathare, the official candidate of Sharad Pawar-led NCP faction from Vadgaon Sheri, has approached local election commission officials with a complaint regarding an independent candidate with the same name. The NCP (SP) leader cited anomalies in the affidavit as he sought the rejection of the independent candidate's nomination. However, the election officer dismissed the plea, allowing the candidate to remain in the race.Bapusaheb Tukaram Pathare is contesting against the ruling Ajit Pawar-led NCP MLA, Sunil Tingre, in Vadgaon Sheri, making it a two-way contest. The battle took an interesting turn after a resident of Ahmednagar with a similar name filed his nomination as an independent candidate.Bapu Baban Pathare's name is similar to that of Bapusaheb Tukaram Pathare, a key opponent of Tingre in the constituency."A dummy candidate with my father's name, Bapusaheb Pathare, filed his nomination at the last moment on Monday. As per the rules, candidates' affidavits should be displayed publicly, but Bapu Baban Pathare's affidavit was not on display. During our scrutiny of his affidavit, we found that he had not disclosed one of his loans and the amount in his bank accounts," said Surendra Pathare, son of Bapusaheb Pathare, the NCP (SP) candidate.He added that, since it is mandatory for candidates to disclose assets through the affidavit, they raised an objection and filed a formal complaint.ALSO READ:The election officer stated that a total of 24 candidates filed nominations in the Vadgaon Sheri constituency. "A complaint was received against one candidate, Bapu Baban Pathare, alleging that he failed to disclose one of his outstanding loans in the affidavit. We sought clarification from Bapu Pathare, who explained that he is paying EMIs on the loan and that it’s not a loan per se. Based on rules stating that minor mistakes in affidavits should not lead to disqualification, we allowed his candidacy," the officer said.Pathare mentioned that they will approach higher authorities to push for the cancellation of Bapu Baban Pathare's candidacy.