Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi with RJD leader Tejaswi Yadav and Vanchit Bahujan Aaghadi leader Prakash Ambedkar during a rally in Mumbai, Sunday, March 17, 2024.
Credit: PTI Photo
Mumbai: In a surprising turn of events, Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA) founder Prakash Ambedkar floated a Third Front after discussions with Maratha reservation campaigner Manoj Jarange-Patil and distanced away from the Congress-led Maha Vikas Aghadi.
The development comes days after Ambedkar attended the rally of I.N.D.I.A. in Mumbai which was presided over by Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and attended by Wayanad MP Rahul Gandhi and a host of leaders of the opposition bloc.
Ambedkar, the grandson of Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar, the chief architect of the Constitution is lawyer by profession, and two-time Lok Sabha MP from Akola in Maharashtra and one-time Rajya Sabha MP.
Over weeks, Ambedkar held discussions with Maharashtra Congress leadership, NCP (SCP) supremo Sharad Pawar and Shiv Sena (UBT) head Uddhav Thackeray.
Ambedkar announced the first list of nine candidates.
Ambedkar, himself, will contest from Akola in the Vidarbha region of Maharashtra.
The candidates are: Sanjay Kewat (Bhandara-Gondiya), Hitesh Madavi (Gadchiroli-Chimur), Rajesh Belle (Chandrapur), Vasant Magar (Buldhana), Prajakta Pillewan (Amravati), Prof. Rajendra Salunke (Wardha), Khemsing Pawar (Yavatmal-Washim).
The VBA State Committee has decided to support Vikas Thakre, the Congress candidate in Nagpur.
It has decided to support Prakash Shendage of OBC Bahujan Party from Sangli, if he contests.
Addressing a news conference in Akola, Ambedkar said that he had a detailed negotiation with Jarange-Patil a day ago in Jalna and it was decided to nominate OBC and Muslim candidates who are not being given any nominations by other major parties.
The new front will declare its full ‘inclusive’ list of Lok Sabha candidates 2 April, from the poor, marginalised, underprivileged Marathas and Muslims, who will be supported by the masses. Members of the Jain community would also be included.
Earlier in the day, Ambedkar, VBA State President Rekha Thakur, Vice-President Siddharth Mokale, Dr D Pundkar, Farooq Ahmed, Arundhati Sirsat, Ashok Sonone and others, met and held discussions.
The VBA comprises a group of Dalits, Tribals, Dhangars, Kolis, Agris, Banjaras, Malis, Kaikadis and other communities.
In the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, the VBA had damaged the prospects of the then Congress-NCP Democratic Front.