BJP Pune Factionalism Escalates: Banner Erected in PMC Against Murlidhar Mohol’s Lok Sabha Candidature

Pune: So far, there have been quiet internal rumours of intra-party candidature rivalry in the Pune BJP Party. However, now, a banner has been put up in the Pune Municipal Corporation building, opposing the candidature of Murlidhar Mohol for the upcoming Lok Sabha election. Therefore, the intra-party tussle for the Pune Lok Sabha ticket has for the first time publicly come to the fore.

In the BJP’s internal committee, it has been discussed that Murlidhar Mohol will be the official candidate of the BJP for the Pune Lok Sabha seat. But the latest banner incident has clearly shown internal opposition to Mohol’s candidature. Meanwhile, PMC immediately removed this banner from its premises.

What exactly was written on the banner?

The banner reads out like:

Standing was given, Mayor was given, and General Secretary was also given…

Now MP too?

Now, it’s too much, we’ll definitely defeat you.

-Hard-working BJP worker

In Pune Lok Sabha seat, there is a long queue of aspirants. Many BJP leaders and party workers, including Jagdish Mulik and Sunil Deodhar, are in the race for the contest. However, recently, there have been indications of Muralidhar Mohol’s name on the list of potential candidates announced by the BJP. Therefore, many aspiring BJP candidates have been clearly expressing their displeasure over this decision.

With the latest attempt to show party activists’ displeasure with Mohol’s candidature through banners, aspiring candidates are signalling potential intra-party strife over the Lok Sabha seat. Recently, Pune has also witnessed an event war among the BJP workers in the city.

Murlidhar Mohol is the prominent BJP leader in Pune city and has been a continuously a member of the Pune Municipal Corporation since 2002. In 2017-2018, he was made Chairman of the Pune Municipal Corporation Standing Committee and further the Mayor of Pune Municipal Corporation from 2019 till 2022. Apart from this, he was elected as a vice president of the All India Council of Mayors.

Mohol was also appointed as a director of Pune Smart City Development Corporation Limited (PSCDCL) in 2017–2018, along with Pune Mahanagar Pariwan Mahamandal Limited (PMPML), and was a member of the Pune Metropolitan Region Development Authority (PMRDA) during the same time. Apart from this, Mohol was the official candidate of the BJP party for the Khadakwasla constituency election in 2009.