States » WestPosted at: Oct 13 2026 8:56PM


Maha: Sapkal urges voters to defeat BJP’s ‘money power’ in Legislative Council elections

Pune, Oct 13 (UNI) Maharashtra Congress president Harshwardhan Sapkal today urged voters to defeat what he described as the BJP’s arrogance of money power in the upcoming Legislative Council elections and ensure the victory of all five Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) candidates.
"Show that votes cannot be bought in a democracy and defeat the BJP’s arrogance of money power," he said while addressing an election campaign meeting organised at Balgandharva Rangmandir in Pune in support of MVA candidates for the graduate and teachers’ constituencies.
Sapkal alleged that public confidence in several institutions, including the Election Commission and the Maharashtra Public Service Commission (MPSC), had eroded. He said democratic and constitutional values were under pressure and stressed the need to elect capable representatives who could raise the concerns of graduates and teachers in the legislature.
He said the MVA remained committed to implementing the old pension scheme, an assurance included in its 2024 manifesto, despite the alliance failing to form the government.
Sapkal also said that during the Congress-led government, permissions had been granted to several educational institutions associated with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), indicating that the party had not refrained from taking decisions on institutional grounds.
Former Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan, who also addressed the meeting, criticised the BJP governments at the Centre and in Maharashtra, alleging widespread corruption and mismanagement of the drought situation in the state.
Criticising the government's emphasis on publicity around the vision of a developed India, he said that advertising alone could not ensure development. He stressed that strengthening educational institutions and improving intellectual and technological capabilities were essential for progress in an era increasingly shaped by artificial intelligence.
Chavan urged MVA workers to intensify their campaign and ensure maximum voter participation, expressing confidence that both candidates contesting from Pune would emerge victorious if the alliance worked with determination.
The meeting was organised in support of MVA candidates Prof. Jayant Asgaonkar and Harshada Deshmukh Jadhav from the Pune teachers' and graduates' constituencies, respectively.
Those present included NCP (SP) president Sharad Pawar, who addressed the gathering online, former minister Vishwajit Kadam, NCP (SP) state president Shashikant Shinde, former minister Jayant Patil, MP Dhairyasheel Mohite-Patil, former minister Harshvardhan Patil, Congress senior vice-president Mohan Joshi, MLA Bapusaheb Pathare and senior leaders Ulhas Pawar, Prabhakar Deshmukh and Ankush Kakade, among others. UNI SP SS
Tags: #Maha: Sapkal urges voters to defeat BJP’s ‘money power’ in Legislative Council elections
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