Ajit Pawar returns to sugar mill polls after 40 years in 3-way contest

More than four decades after he last contested cooperative sugar mill polls, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar is back in the fray as one of 90 candidates for Malegaon Cooperative Sugar Mill elections in Pune's Baramati.

His party functionaries said Pawar had last contested sugar mill polls in 1984, going on to serve on the board of directors of Chhatrapati Cooperative Sugar Mill. Elections to the 21-member board of directors of Malegaon Cooperative Sugar Mill, currently led by the Ajit Pawar-led NCP, will be held on June 22, with results to be announced the following day, they added.  Ajit Pawar-led Nilkantheshwar Panel is currently in power at Malegaon Cooperative Sugar Mill.  It had defeated Chandrarao Tawre's Sahakar Bachav panel in 2019. Tawre, a known name in the co-operative sector, was once considered close to Sharad Pawar but later parted ways.  Besides Nilkantheshwar Panel and Sahakar Bachav panel, the Sharad Pawar-led NCP (SP) too has fielded 'Baliraja Sahakar Bachav' panel, making the contest a triangular one.  "A total 593 candidates had filed their nominations, of which 503 were declared valid following scrutiny.  Today was the last day for withdrawal of nominations and 412 candidates withdrew their nominations, leaving 90 candidates in the poll fray," said Election Officer Yashwant Mane.  "There are 19549 voters from group A, which is of sugarcane cultivators from the region, while 102 voters come from group B consisting of members of various cooperative bodies affiliated to the sugar mill," he added. An NCP functionary told PTI that Ajit Pawar filed his nomination eight days ago in the B group.

"This is the first time he has filed his nomination for Malegaon Cooperative Sugar Mill polls.  Pawar had last contested sugar mill polls in 1984 and served on the board of directors of the Chhatrapati Cooperative Sugar Mill.  We wanted the elections at the sugar mill to take place without any fight. We had approached the opposite panel but in vain," he said. The functionary claimed the opposition was alleging mismanagement in the functioning of the sugar mill.  "To quell this narrative, Ajit Pawar decided to personally enter into the poll fray. It is to give confidence to stakeholders that his presence in the board will ensure transparency and speedy decision making," he said. While earlier polls took place when the Pawar household and NCP were undivided, this election will be a direct fight between the two factions, another associate said.  Speaking to PTI, Yugendra Pawar, nephew of the deputy CM, said an independent panel has been fielded by NCP (SP) as the sugar mill has failed to provide fair price to sugarcane cultivators.  "Workers are not being paid based on merit. We are contesting the polls to ensure fair pricing for cultivators and to bring transparency to the mill's functioning," said Yugendra Pawar, who had earlier contested unsuccessfully against Ajit Pawar from the Baramati assembly constituency.  He claimed the NCP (SP) panel comprises modest and ordinary member-farmers, unlike rival panels which include influential candidates. "Some of the current directors are not even farmers; they are contractors," he alleged.