Maha BJP asks leaders not to seek poll tickets for relatives

Maharashtra BJP has asked its party leaders to desist from seeking tickets to contest the upcoming elections to the zilla parishads and municipal corporations in the state for their relatives or acquaintances. “As per the directions of BJP president Nitin Gadkari, senior leader Gopinath Munde and state BJP in-charge Venkaiah Naidu, tickets will not be given to relatives or PAs (personal assistants) of any leader in the party,” state BJP chief Sudhir Mungantiwar said in Mumbai today. “During allotment of the tickets MPs, MLAs and office-bearers of the party should not insist for tickets to their relatives who are not in politics,” he said. “A candidate who is active in politics and has been working for a long time at the zilla parishad and municipal corporation level would only get priority,” he said after releasing a booklet and video CD on the developments done by the Shiv Sena-BJP in last five years in Mumbai and suburbs. [caption id=“attachment_186271” align=“alignleft” width=“380” caption=“PTI”] [/caption] Leader of Opposition in the Maharashtra Legislative Council Vinod Tawde was also present on the occasion. The booklet and CD was conceptualised by BJP group leader in the BMC Ashish Shelar. On the request made by the leaders of BJP-Shiv Sena and RPI seeking joint counting of votes of the zilla parishad and municipal corporations polls, Mungantiwar said that the Election Commission is yet to revert back to them over the issue. “No clarification has come from the Election Commission on whether the counting of votes of zilla parishad and municipal corporations will be done together or not,” he said. Leaders of the three combine had reasoned that if counting of votes for the local bodies –zilla parishads and panchayat samitis–is taken up on February 8, it would have a direct bearing on the polling to be held on February 16 for the 10 municipal corporations. Stating that some NCP leaders were creating a rift in the party, the BJP leader said, “If Dhananjay Munde, nephew of Gopinath Munde, wants to quit the party then he should first resign as MLC, as BJP has given him that post.” PTI