Congress and OBC Bahujan Aghadi have joined forces in a formal alliance to contest Maharashtra’s upcoming district council and panchayat elections together, aiming to ensure better representation for the Dhangar, OBC, and other communities across the state
Maharashtra Congress chief Harshwardhan Sapkal and OBC Aghadi head Prakash Shendge.
The OBC Bahujan Front, led by Prakash Shendge, has joined hands with the Congress party in a formal ideological alliance, with both the parties announcing that they will contest the upcoming district council and panchayat elections in Maharashtra together.
The announcement was made by Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee chief Harshwardhan Sapkal at a press conference in Mumbai on Monday.
Shendge, along with his party members Chandrakant Bavkar, JT Tandel, and Pandurang Mirgal, held detailed discussions with the Congress state leadership at Tilak Bhavan before the press conference.
Speaking to the media, Sapkal said, “The OBC Bahujan Front’s decision to work with Congress is a positive step. This alliance is not merely for power but is aimed at ensuring social justice across communities.”
He added that the Narendra Modi government has yet to implement the caste-based census demanded by Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi.
“Congress believes in proportional representation based on population, and Rahul Gandhi’s stance has received support from all communities. The alliance will ensure proper representation for the Dhangar and OBC (other backward classes) communities,” Sapkal said.
Criticising the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government, Sapkal stated, “(Maharashtra Chief Minister) Devendra Fadnavis had promised in Baramati in 2014 that the Dhangar community reservation would be implemented first. However, nothing has been done till date. The BJP has misled Dhangar, OBC, Maratha, and tribal communities under the pretext of reservations and fuelled caste-based conflicts, eroding trust in them.”
Speaking at the event, Shendge said the OBC reservation framework is being weakened and the 27 per cent quota is under threat.
“Government resolutions are issued, but there are no benefits to the community. To ensure justice for OBCs, we decided to form an independent party and ally with like-minded parties. We thank Rahul Gandhi for taking a stand on the caste-based census. Under his leadership, the OBC reservation issue will be resolved,” Shendge said.
Congress felicitates newly elected BMC corporators
In Bhiwandi, 30 Congress corporators emerged victorious in the recent municipal elections. Sapkal felicitated the newly elected corporators. The event was attended by senior leaders, including Minority Department chief and former legislator Wajahat Mirza, Congress Vice-Presidents, Organisation and Administration Addl Ganesh Patil, Bhiwandi District Congress Committee President and former Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA) Rashid Tahir Momin, in-charge Rajesh Sharma, Pradesh Secretary Noor Ansari, as well as leaders Javed Farukhi and Ramakant Bhoi, along with several other party functionaries and workers.
Sapkal congratulated the corporators on their success and urged them to work strongly for public welfare in the days ahead.
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