Dada vs Dada clash in PCMC elections

As the Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) elections approach, the city is witnessing a highstakes 'Dada versus Dada' political battle, with both the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) eyeing control of the civic body.

- Varad Bhatkhande PIMPRI-CHINCHWAD

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar and Bhosari MLA Mahesh Landge, both popularly known as Dada, are now pitted against each other.

The rivalry has drawn attention as Landge was once a trusted aide of Pawar during the latter's political rise in Pimpri-Chinchwad. Despite their parties being allies in the state and at the Centre, both leaders have taken open jibes at each other. Pawar recently launched his party's campaign, where, without naming anyone but leaving little doubt, he targeted and criticised Landge.

Landge, too, has repeatedly hinted at his disapproval of the city's "second Dada", while carefully avoiding crediting Pawar for Pimpri-Chinchwad's development. At one such event, when both leaders shared the stage in the presence of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, Pawar directly responded, saying, “I don't know what his problem with me is, as he didn't give me credit.”

Landge, a former wrestler from the Bhosari area, entered politics in the mid-1990s, when Pawar was already an established leader, having served as both an MP and an MLA from Baramati. At the time, Ajit Pawar's influence was largely seen in the shadow of his uncle, former chief minister and Union minister Sharad Pawar.