Maharashtra Assembly Polls 2024: Sandeep Naik quits BJP after being denied ticket, joins Sharad Pawar-led NCP(SP)

Navi Mumbai: After being denied ticket by the BJP, two-time MLA Sandeep Naik joined the Sharad Pawar-led NCP (SP) on Tuesday - a development that is politically significant in Mumbai’s satellite township of Navi Mumbai.

Sandeep Naik is the son of former minister and BJP MLA Ganesh Naik, who represents Airoli, and has been renominated by the party.

The Naik family wields influence in Navi Mumbai. Sandeep Naik is a two-time MLA from Airoli, which he won for undivided NCP in 2009 and 2014.

Sandeep Naik’s elder brother Sanjeev Naik is a former MP from Thane which he won in 2009 on an NCP ticket. Sandeep Naik was BJP’s Navi Mumbai unit President.

At a rally in Belapur, Sandeep Naik joined the NCP (SP) in presence of state unit President Jayant Patil.

"Previously, whenever I came to Navi Mumbai, it felt like something was missing. But today, I feel like the missing piece has been found," said Patil, lauding Naik's decision to align with NCP (SP).

“I tolerated insults in the past, but I will not tolerate them anymore,” said Sandeep Naik, who is expected to contest the elections from Belapur against sitting BJP MLA Manda Mhatre.

Ganesh Naik was defeated by Manda Mhatre in the 2014 elections when he was with the undivided NCP; however, he later joined the BJP.

Ganesh Naik was once a close confidante of late Shiv Sena supremo Bal Thackeray and was a minister in the erstwhile Shiv Sena-BJP alliance government, but parted ways. Later, when Sharad Pawar was expelled from the Congress – and formed NCP, he joined it and was a minister in the Democratic Front government.

The Naik family has asked for two tickets from the BJP.

Assembly Elections 2024 | The Maharashtra Assembly polls will take place against the backdrop of a fractured political landscape in the western state where the Shiv Sena and NCP will be going up against the Uddhav Thackeray and Sharad Pawar factions, even as the BJP and Congress try to make their mark. Meanwhile, in Jharkhand, the JMM faces a new challenge after Hemant Soren's recent arrest and Champai, a longstanding party member, joining the BJP. The Haryana election resulted in a shock loss for Congress, which was looking to galvanize on the Lok Sabha poll performance, while J&K also saw the grand old party eventually stepping away from the cabinet, with Omar Abdullah's JKNC forming government. It remains to be seen if the upcoming polls help BJP cement its position further or provide a fillip to I.N.D.I.A. Check live updates and track the latest coverage, live news, in-depth opinions, and analyses only on Deccan Herald.

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