Ganesh Naik appointed BJP's election in-charge for Thane, Shinde's home turf

Mumbai, Nov 6 (PTI) The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has appointed minister Ganesh Naik as its election in-charge for Thane district, the home turf of Maharashtra deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, ahead of the upcoming local body polls.

Naik's appointment also comes months after he made several critical remarks against Shinde, who heads the Shiv Sena, a BJP ally.

The BJP, gearing up for the local self-government elections, announced the list of district-level election heads and in-charges across Maharashtra. Naik will oversee election preparations in Thane city, Thane rural, Kalyan, Ulhasnagar, Mira-Bhayandar, Bhiwandi and Navi Mumbai.

In Beed district, BJP MLA Suresh Dhas has been appointed as district election head, while minister Pankaja Munde has been made the election in-charge. The two leaders, who were at odds with each other after the last assembly elections, will now have to work together.

Minister Nitesh Rane will be the election in-charge for Sindhudurg district, while Ganesh Bidkar has been assigned Pune rural. In Mumbai, minister and local MLA Ashish Shelar will serve as election in-charge.

In Solapur, minister Jaykumar Gore has been appointed to the post, while minister Atul Save will oversee Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar district. Former chief minister Ashok Chavan, who was once with the Congress, will be the election in-charge for Nanded, and MP Dhananjay Mahadik will handle Kolhapur.

MLA Prashant Thakur has been appointed as election in-charge in Raigad, Girish Mahajan in Nashik, and Sanjay Sawkare in Jalgaon. In Ahilyanagar district, minister Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil will serve as election in-charge, while Union Minister Murlidhar Mohol will be responsible for Pune. MLC Niranjan Davkhare will oversee Ratnagiri, and minister Shivrendraraje Bhosale will handle Satara.

The BJP said the appointments were made as part of its state-wide strategy to strengthen its organisational machinery and prepare for the upcoming civic polls. PTI ND KRK