3 months ago
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Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena has nominated Jyoti Waghmare arsenic the enactment campaigner for the Rajya Sabha elections connected Thursday (March 5, 2026). Seven candidates volition record their nominations for the 7 seats successful the Rajya Sabha elections, which are expected to beryllium unopposed successful Maharashtra.
Ms. Waghmare joined the enactment successful April 2023 pursuing the Shiv Sena split, and was appointed arsenic the State spokesperson and the territory interaction main for Dharashiv.
Ms. Waghmare’s 15-year governmental and societal vocation began successful Solapur, with her engagement successful the Ambedkarite movement. Her activism includes enactment with the Human Rights Campaign and the Vidrohi Cultural Movement. She served arsenic a corporator successful the Solapur Municipal Corporation earlier entering State politics. Her father, Nagnath Waghmare was a Dalit Panther activist.
Ms. Waghmare holds a Ph.D. successful English Literature and has implicit a decennary of acquisition arsenic a assemblage professor, including a stint astatine Walchand College. She has received State-level designation for probe connected women’s issues.
As Shiv Sena’s spokesperson, Ms. Waghmare is simply a three-time talker astatine the party’s yearly Dussehra rallies. She is known for her crisp critiques of the Thackeray group’s leadership. Her Rajya Sabha summons is seen arsenic the party’s endorsement for her scholarly prowess, particularly connected the Constitution and Ambedkar’s teachings, and her beardown grassroot beingness successful agrarian Western Maharashtra.
With implicit 230 MLAs successful the 288-member Assembly, the BJP-led Mahayuti alliance, which includes the NCP and the Shiv Sena, is successful a presumption to guarantee the predetermination of each its nominees. The NCP and Shiv Sena person to nominate 1 campaigner each.
The Rajya Sabha members from Maharashtra whose six-year word is ending successful April are: Sharad Pawar, Athawale, Fauzia Khan of NCP (SP), Rajni Patil (Congress), Priyanka Chaturvedi (Shiv Sena-UBT), and Dhananjay Patil and Bhagwat Karad (both from BJP).
