BJP leadership says independent candidate Gopal Shetty will not harm the party

Mumbai: Maharashtra's BJP leadership has claimed that former MP and independent candidate from Boriavali, Gopal Shetty will not do anything that will harm the party.
"I will never leave BJP. Gopalji Shetty has given this testimony after meeting Devendraji Fadnavis and Shivprakashji that he will not do anything that will harm the party," BJP National General Secretary Vinod Tawde said on X.
This comes days after Shetty rebelled against his party and announced that he would contest as an independent candidate for the Borivali seat, following BJP's denial of a ticket from that assembly seat. BJP has announced Sanjay Upadhyay as its official candidate from Borivali.
Earlier, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister and BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis said that the rebels are also their people and exuded confidence that the party will be successful in making everyone understand.
"They (rebels) are also our own people, it is our duty to make them understand, sometimes there is a lot of anger but they have formed their mindset in the larger interest of the party, I am confident that we will be successful in making everyone understand," Fadnavis said.
Meanwhile, both the ruling Mahayuti alliance and the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) -- comprising the Shiv Sena (UBT), NCP (Sharad Pawar faction), and Congress -- have intensified their preparations for the upcoming elections to 288 Assembly seats in the State. The BJP is part of the ruling Mahayuti alliance alongside the Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde faction) and Ajit Pawar-led NCP.
In the upcoming assembly polls, the Baramati constituency in Maharashtra will again witness a family battle as NCP leader Ajit Pawar will face his nephew Yugendra Pawar. He is the son of Ajit Pawar's younger brother Shrinivas Pawar.
Earlier, Baramati witnessed a high-profile battle in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, when Sunetra Pawar contested against Supriya Sule. The latter won the contest by 1.5 lakh votes.
Maharashtra elections will be held in a single phase on November 20 with counting of votes held on November 23.
In the 2019 assembly elections, the BJP won 105 seats, the Shiv Sena 56, and the Congress 44. In 2014, the BJP secured 122 seats, the Shiv Sena 63, and the Congress 42.