Nagpur graduates’ poll: NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar) expels independent candidate Nitesh Karale for six years; what the party letter says and how Karale responded

The Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar) has expelled Nitesh Karale, known as Karale Master or Karale Guruji, for six years. Karale is contesting the Nagpur Division Graduates’ constituency as an independent. The letter, signed by party general secretary Ravindra Pawar, was issued on Thursday, 22 October, the day before polling. It says he kept his candidature against Abhijit Wanjari, the official Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) candidate, and created confusion among voters by claiming Sharad Pawar’s support. Karale said he accepts the decision but called it wrong.

The action at a glance

• Party: Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar).
• Signed by: general secretary Ravindra Pawar. The letter says the action follows instructions from the state president and senior leadership.
• Duration: six years. The letter’s word is “expelled” (nishkasit); most outlets call it an expulsion, while one report uses “suspension”.
• Karale’s party post: Sarkarnama describes him as a state spokesperson, Pudhari as a state secretary.
• Party’s backing: the letter restates the party’s full support for Abhijit Govindrao Wanjari, the sitting Congress MLC and the MVA candidate for the seat.
• Earlier warning: according to Lokmat, state president Shashikant Shinde had already issued a letter asking party workers and supporters to vote for Wanjari and not for Karale.

What the party letter says

According to the letter published by Saam TV, the party’s objection is that Karale filed an independent nomination from the Nagpur Division Graduates’ constituency in defiance of the party’s policies and decisions. The party says it received complaints that he was creating the impression in the constituency that “the party’s national president Sharadchandraji Pawar Saheb supports me”. The letter calls this “a clear violation of party discipline, policies and the decisions of the Maha Vikas Aghadi”, and says that on the instructions of the state president and senior leadership he is “expelled from the party for six years” for breaching discipline.

Neither the letter nor the published reports say who made the complaints about Sharad Pawar’s support or what exactly Karale is said to have claimed.

What Karale said

• He told reporters he learnt of the action from the media.
• He said he accepts the party’s decision but believes it is wrong, and said he respects Sharad Pawar.
• He said he campaigned across the state for the party in the Lok Sabha and Assembly elections, addressed 110 meetings and neglected his own classes to do so.
• He said the possibility of pressure from the Congress behind the action could not be ruled out. We found no response from the Congress on this.
• ETV Bharat quotes him as saying “the leaders played a game with me” and that he would later expose the role of the leaders concerned. The report does not say he named anyone.
• He told Pudhari that voters would give their answer through the ballot and that he would make his position clear after the election.
• On 5 October, before filing his nomination, Karale told TV9 Marathi that his candidature could not be called a rebellion because graduates’ constituency elections are not fought on party symbols.

Reaction from other parties

At the time of writing, we found no published reaction to the expulsion from the Congress, the BJP or Abhijit Wanjari. We will update this story if one comes.

Nagpur graduates’ seat: key details

• Polling: today, Friday 23 October, 8 am to 4 pm.
• Counting: Tuesday, 27 October.
• Constituency: six districts (Nagpur, Chandrapur, Wardha, Bhandara, Gondia and Gadchiroli), 2,55,603 voters and 38 candidates.
• Main candidates: sitting Congress MLC Abhijit Wanjari for the MVA, Sudhakar Kohale for the BJP, and independent Nitesh Karale, among others.
• The ballot carries no party symbols; voters write preference numbers against candidates’ names. Expulsion from a party does not affect the ballot or the validity of a nomination, and Karale’s name is on the ballot.

For voters

• Only people on the separate graduates’ electoral roll can vote. Check your name and polling station at mahaelection.gov.in/Citizen/Search.
• Mark preferences only with the violet sketch pen handed to you at the booth. A 1 against your first choice is essential.
• Do not sign the ballot, write your name or make any other mark on it, or it may be rejected.
• The divisional commissioner, who is the returning officer, will declare the result after counting on 27 October.

Also read: Vidarbha graduates’ and teachers’ polls today: district-wise voters and booths; Graduates’ and teachers’ counting on 27 October: quota and preference votes explained; Council polls: the five seats, dry days and leave rules

Sources: Saam TV (party letter); Lokmat; Sarkarnama; Sakal; Tarun Bharat; Dainik Prabhat; Pudhari (Karale’s response); Saam TV (Karale’s press conference); Navarashtra; TV9 Marathi; ETV Bharat; TV9 Marathi (5 October, before nomination)