Pune: The Congress party has announced its first list of 48 candidates for the upcoming Maharashtra Assembly elections.

The list, which includes many sitting MLAs, was approved in a meeting of the Central Election Committee chaired by Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge.

From Pune, the Congress has declared one candidate so far: Ravindra Dhangekar, the sitting MLA from the Kasba Peth assembly constituency.

Dhangekar gained prominence after defeating BJP candidate Hemant Rasane in the Kasba by-election. As of now, Dhangekar is the only Congress candidate officially announced from Pune.

Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar) has already announced two candidates from Pune, representing the Hadapsar and Wadgaonsheri constituencies.

With Congress confirming its candidate for Kasba Peth, the Maha Vikas Aghadi alliance has now revealed its contenders for three key seats in Pune.

However, the candidates for other significant constituencies, including Shivajinagar, Parvati, and Pune Cantonment, are yet to be announced.

Varsha Gaikwad’s Sister Receives Nomination:

In the first list, Congress has nominated Vikas Thakre from Nagpur West. Thakre, who lost in the recent Lok Sabha elections, had contested against BJP leader Nitin Gadkari.

Additionally, Jyoti Eknath Gaikwad has been nominated from the Dharavi Assembly constituency. Jyoti is the sister of Varsha Gaikwad, who is currently serving as a Member of Parliament.

With Varsha Gaikwad moving to Parliament, her sister has been selected to contest in her place for the Assembly seat.