The senior BJP leader had once been a chief minister aspirant and face of the party for the OBC community.
BJP leader Eknath Khadse today filed his nomination papers for the Maharashtra Assembly Elections despite being dropped from the final list of candidates that the party released earlier today. The veteran leader claimed that he had been part of the decision-making body of the Bharatiya Janata Party for a long time and the possibility of him getting a ticket 'cannot be ruled out'.
"I've filed my nomination today. My name is not on the list issued by the party, but the possibility of me getting a ticket cannot be ruled out," said Eknath Khadse, "I don't know if this seat is going to be with the Shiv Sena or with the BJP, but what I do know is that I've been loyal to the BJP for the past 42 years."
Further elaborating on his tenure with the saffron party, Khadse said, "If being a loyalist to the party is a crime, then yes, I am a criminal." He said that in the past 25 years, from the times of Pramod Mahajan and Gopinath Munde, he has been a part of the decision-making bodies in Maharashtra BJP. "I used to decide on tickets for others," Eknath Khadse said.
Senior BJP leader Eknath Khadse was once a chief minister aspirant and face of the party for OBC community. Braving a tough political career, an earlier report of him locking horns with Girish Mahajan for a Lok Sabha ticket from Raver had surfaced during the General Elections this year.
Eknath Khadse's political influence was affected badly after his alleged involvement in Pune land scam came under the spotlight. He was forced to resign over the matter in 2016. Since then, Khadse has been sidelined in the party.
The BJP earlier in the day announced its list of 125 candidates for the Maharashtra Assembly Polls.
Twelve sitting MLAs have been denied tickets by the BJP for the Assembly polls in Maharashtra, scheduled to be held on October 21. BJP on Tuesday released the list of 125 candidates.
The party has rewarded many turncoats with tickets, while Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis will contest from his traditional Nagpur South-West constituency. Surprisingly, senior party leader Eknath Khadse's name was missing in the first list.
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