Opposition leader in council throws in hat for Borivli seat, confident of easy victory

MUMBAI: Brushing aside their daily woes, Borivlikars are all chuffed up for a "paisa vasool" fight between BJP honcho Vinod Tawde and MNS vice-president Nayan Kadam.
The presence of three more contestants-Ashok Sutrale of the Congress, Balbir Singh of NCP and Uttam Prakash Agrawal of Shiv Sena-has made the October 15 polls an exciting affair, say observers.That Tawde, who occupies the Leader of the Opposition's post in the legislative council, should seek nomination for the assembly polls surprised many. Party sources say Tawde was keen to dispel the popular impression that he was a boardroom politician, a sort of featherweight who shunned direct election. Second, Tawde knows that his claim to chief ministership will be considered valid by his party only if he gets elected to the legislative assembly.
Tawde first chose Mulund, a BJP stronghold, as his launch pad. But BJP's sitting MLA Sardar Tara Singh's popularity compelled Tawde to turn his sight westward to Borivli. A resident of Vile Parle, Tawde pitched his tent in Borivli a month ago, it is said.
There were initial rumblings in the Borivli BJP, chiefly over Tawde's Parle connection. "Many karyakartas believed that there was no reason to import a leader from Vile Parle when we have many deserving candidates in Borivli," said a BJP worker.
Tawde effectively used his persuasive skills to pacify the dissidents. "Tawde-ji is a very senior leader. His residential address is a small issue. We are happy he is the party's Borivli candidate," said Atul Desai, a senior party worker.
"I have no competitors. I will have an easy victory," he said. He plans to focus on the Congress-NCP's 15-year corrupt rule in Maharashtra.
MNS chief Raj Thackeray chose Nayan Kadam to cross swords with Tawde chiefly because of the former's organizing skills and his spunk, said Prasad Kulapkar, a senior MNS functionary. "You need a man of substance to take on Tawde-ji," he added.
Kadam's long-time links with Borivli will strengthen his case against Tawde, the "outsider", say party workers. He heads the MNS' aviation union, and is closely associated with the Bappa Sitaram group, a socio-religious organisation, which boasts of an impressive youth quotient, spread across the suburbs. A senior MNS functionary said the Sena may tacitly back Kadam to accomplish its plan to get Tawde defeated in the polls.
"Nayanbhai is in a win-win situation. He will garner ample votes for the party even if he loses the election. But just imagine if Nayanbhai wins the Borivli seat. He will become a giant killer," gushed Kunal Mainkar, Kadam's campaign manager.
The Sena has fielded noted chartered accountant Uttam Prakash Agrawal to poach on the BJP's Gujarati-Rajasthani voters, said a Sena worker. But local Sainiks are upset with the party for choosing a rank outsider-and a non-Marathi-over party veterans such as Vilas Potnis, Dilip Nerurkar and Vijay Daruwale for the Borivli seat.
Ashok Sutrale, the Congress candidate, is optimistic of reaping good votes in the fight between Tawde and Kadam, said senior party worker Vinod Sharma. NCP's Balbir Singh is in the poll fray too.