MUMBAI: Union Ministers Nitin Gadkari, Subhash Bhamre and Hansraj Ahir are among the key BJP candidates from Maharashtra as the party announced its first list for the Lok Sabha elections Thursday.
The list also included Sujay Vikhe Patil, the son of Congress leader and Leader of Opposition in the Assembly Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil.
Gadkari would be taking on Congress's Nana Patole in Nagpur. Former BJP MP Patole, who represented the Bhandara-Gondiya constituency had last year joined Congress. Ahir, the Minister of State (MoS) for Home, would be contesting from Chandrapur, from where he has won four times, MoS for Defence Subhash Bhamre will face Congress's Kunal Rohidas Patil in Dhule.
Among the members of political families who figure in the BJP's first list from Maharashtra are Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha chief and late Pramod Mahajan's daughter, Poonam Mahajan; late Gopinath Munde's daughter Pritam Munde, and state BJP leader Eknath Khadse's daughter-in-law Raksha Khadse.
Mahajan will seek to retain her Mumbai North Central seat against Congress's Priya Dutt whom she had defeated last time.
Pritam Munde would be contesting from Beed and Raksha Khadse from Raver. State BJP chief Raosaheb Danve will contest from Jalna constituency. The party has denied ticket to two sitting MPs from Maharashtra in the first list.
Ahmednagar MP Dilip Gandhi has been replaced by Sujay Vikhe Patil who joined the BJP only a few days ago. Sujay will take on Sangram Jagtap of NCP. The BJP also dropped Latur MP Sunil Gaikwad, favouring Sudhakar Shrungare instead.