Maharashtra Council Polls: Congress to Field 7 Candidates, Support Partners

The Congress party is preparing to contest seven out of the 17 seats in the upcoming Maharashtra Legislative Council elections from local body constituencies. The elections are scheduled to take place on June 18, while the counting of votes will begin on June 22. The announcement has intensified political activity in the state as major parties finalize their strategies and alliances ahead of the polls. According to Maharashtra Congress spokesperson Atul Londhe, the party is expected to field candidates in Solapur, Nanded, Yavatmal, Bhandara-Gondia, Wardha-Chandrapur, Amravati, and the Nagpur by-election. Congress leaders believe the party has a strong presence in these constituencies after performing well in the recent municipal and local body elections. Londhe stated that Congress secured a considerable number of seats in these regions during the recently held local elections, giving the party confidence to contest independently in these areas. For the remaining 10 Legislative Council seats, Congress is likely to support its alliance partners instead of fielding its own candidates. This move is seen as part of a broader opposition strategy to strengthen coordination among allied parties in Maharashtra. The electoral college for these Legislative Council elections includes elected members from nagar panchayats, municipal councils, municipal corporations, and district councils. These representatives will cast their votes to elect members to the state’s upper house. The Election Commission has already released the full election schedule. The official notification for the elections will be issued on May 25. Candidates can file their nominations until June 1, while scrutiny of nomination papers will take place on June 2. The final date for withdrawal of nominations is June 4. The 16 constituencies where elections are scheduled include Solapur, Sangli-Satara, Ahmednagar, Thane, Jalgaon, Nanded, Bhandara-Gondia, Raigad-Ratnagiri-Sindhudurg, Yavatmal, Pune, Nashik, Wardha-Chandrapur-Gadchiroli, Amravati, Osmanabad-Latur-Beed, Parbhani-Hingoli, and Aurangabad-Jalna. Alongside these seats, a by-election for the Nagpur constituency will also be held. Many of these seats had remained vacant because the terms of previously elected members expired earlier, but elections could not be conducted on time. The Election Commission has now decided to complete the election process, setting the stage for an important political contest in Maharashtra ahead of future state-level battles.