Anuja Kedar: Congress Fields Scam-Convicted Sunil Kedar's Wife From Savner (image: facebook.com/sunilkedar1111)

The Congress has fielded Anuja Kedar, wife of MLA Sunil Kedar, in his place from the Savner assembly constituency. Her nomination came after his husband was convicted and subsequently disqualified in a corruption case. There were reports before that Anuja would contest the polls from the constituency.

Kedar comes from a family tracing significant political lineage. She is the granddaughter of Barrister Sheshrao Krishnarao Wankhede, the former Speaker of the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly and the former President of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). The Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai has been named after him.

Also Read | Rajan Vichare: Shiv Sena (UBT) Candidate For Shinde’s Bastion

Sunil Kedar

Kedar, a veteran Congress leader from the Vidarbha region, has been representing the constituency for five terms: 1995, 2004, 2009, 2014, and 2019. In the 2019 Assembly polls, Kedar won the Savner seat, garnering 1,13,184 votes. He defeated BJP candidate Rajeev Bhaskarrao Potdar by a margin of 26,291 votes.

Kedar served as a Cabinet minister in the state government and is considered close to the Gandhi family.

It was in connection with an alleged Rs 150 crore cooperative bank scam. Sunil Kedar was disqualified as an MLA following his conviction and five-year jail term by a Nagpur court in December last year. The scam emerged after 21 years.

Savner Constituency 

Savner Assembly Constituency is important for the Congress since it has been one of the traditional strongholds. It is located in the Nagpur district in the Vidarbha region. Even with the support the BJP enjoyed in general, the party failed to breach the Congress fortress in the constituency.

The Congress believes that the works undertaken by the Kedar family in the constituency will work in their favour. Besides, the party hopes that the sympathy factor will work in Anuja’s aid.

Also Read | Devyani Pharande Faces Tough Challenge From Nashik Central

Anuja is pitted against BJP’s Ashish Deshmukh. The 288 Assembly seats in Maharashtra will go to polls on November 20 and counting of votes will take place on November 23.

The Assembly elections mark first one in the state after Shiv Sena and  NCP split in 2022, and 2023 respectively.