Overview
- Gokul Gite remained an independent candidate as of Tuesday, refusing to withdraw after repeated persuasion by ministers who met him at Nashik’s Ozar airport on Monday.
- Two other BJP-linked rebels, Ganesh Gite and Prasad Hiray, withdrew after ministerial intervention and have signalled support for the Mahayuti candidate Narendra Darade.
- The Mahayuti alliance holds a reported combined strength of 466 local-authority votes versus 310 needed to win, but concentrated defections or cross-voting by local representatives could still overturn the expected result.
- Shiv Sena leaders say they are uneasy about possible covert backing for Gite and have moved from persuasion to an aggressive campaign for Darade, increasing visible friction with BJP partners.
- The dispute is linked to a parallel rebel challenge in Jalgaon and could deepen BJP–Shiv Sena distrust, so observers say the key things to watch are any informal withdrawal deals, cross-vote patterns, and where local body members allocate their support.