Maharashtra polls: The power of bloodlines

Much has been made in recent years of dynasty politics, but in Maharashtra, political dynasties are increasing and thriving. From old and well-entrenched political families like the Pawars, the Thackerays, the Mundes and the Mohite-Patils to news and powerful ones like the Shindes and Fadnavises.

In putting together this list, the criterion has been that each family should have had at least three members in politics and at least one of whom is contesting the Assembly election.

Who: For years, Congress in Mumbai was run by businessman-turned politician Murli Deora who headed the city unit for two decades from 1981 to 2003. He was mayor of Mumbai, Member of Parliament from south Mumbai for four terms and union petroleum minister in the UPA government. Close to the Gandhis, Deora was also a link between corporate India and the party. It was no coincidence then that Congress’s relations with corporate India started getting strained as Deora withdrew from active public life towards end of the UPA 2 tenure due to illness. He passed away in November 2014.
In 2004, his son Milind Deora, 47, was elected as the south Mumbai MP, and re-elected in 2009 although he lost in 2014 Lok Sabha elections. He also served as minister in telecommunications and shipping ministries during the UPA-2. He was made Mumbai Congress president in March 2019 but quit after party’s debacle in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. He opposed the party conceding the south Mumbai constituency to Shiv Sena in the 2024 elections, and quit to join the Shiv Sena. In April this year he was nominated to Rajya Sabha MP. He is now contesting assembly elections opposite Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray in Worli constituency.
Source of strength: Connections in corporate India, goodwill in south Mumbai constituency.
Do say: All the best in Worli
Don’t say: Rahul Gandhi

Who: Once an auto rickshaw driver in Thane, Eknath Shinde, 60, joined Shiv Sena and moved up steadily. After the death of his mentor and Thane district Shiv Sena chief Anand Dighe, Shinde took over the party unit in the district. He entered the good books of party chief Uddhav Thackeray and simultaneously became a member of the party’s top brass. During the MVA government tenure, he split the party, walked out with majority of Sena MLAs to form a government with the BJP. He is now contesting assembly election from Kopri-Pachpakhadi assembly constituency in Thane for fifth term as MLA. The election will also decide whether Shinde returns as chief minister or faces an uncertain political future.
His son Shrikant, 37, an orthopaedic surgeon, joined politics after his father asked him to contest Lok Sabha elections from Kalyan constituency in 2014. The three-term MLA is entrusted with the party’s management behind the scene.
Source of strength: Resourceful politician, solid grip over politics of Thane district, loyalty of his MLAs and blessings of Delhi
Do say: Anand Dighe
Don’t say: Uddhav Thackeray

Who: Eknath Gaikwad shot into limelight when he defeated Manohar Joshi in the erstwhile Mumbai north central constituency in 2004 Lok Sabha elections. He was re-elected in 2009. Earlier, he was three-term MLA from Dharavi and considered as a prominent Dalit leader in Congress. He was also a minister first in Congress government in 1990-95 and later Congress-NCP government in 1999 to 2004. He passed away in 2021.
His daughter Varsha, 49, a lecturer in Siddharth College, joined politics when her father moved to Lok Sabha. She was elected as Dharavi MLA for four consecutive terms since 2004. Varsha was appointed Mumbai Congress president in June 2023. She also won the Lok Sabha election this year from north central Mumbai constituency. She is the only Congress leader in Mumbai who gets along with Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray. She is also known as a prominent Dalit face of the party.
Her younger sister, Jyoti, 47, is now Congress candidate in Dharavi assembly constituency.
Source of strength: Prominent Dalit face; a grip over Dharavi assembly constituency which the family has been winning for 35 years since 1985.
Do say: Three cheers for Dharavi
Don’t say: Adani group

Who: Once an auto rickshaw driver in Thane, Eknath Shinde, 60, joined Shiv Sena and moved up steadily. After the death of his mentor and Thane district Shiv Sena chief Anand Dighe, Shinde took over the party unit in the district. He entered the good books of party chief Uddhav Thackeray and simultaneously became a member of the party’s top brass. During the MVA government tenure, he split the party, walked out with majority of Sena MLAs to form a government with the BJP. He is now contesting assembly election from Kopri-Pachpakhadi assembly constituency in Thane for fifth term as MLA. The election will also decide whether Shinde returns as chief minister or faces an uncertain political future.
His son Shrikant, 37, an orthopaedic surgeon, joined politics after his father asked him to contest Lok Sabha elections from Kalyan constituency in 2014. The three-term MLA is entrusted with the party’s management behind the scene.
Source of strength: Resourceful politician, solid grip over politics of Thane district, loyalty of his MLAs and blessings of Delhi
Do say: Anand Dighe
Don’t say: Uddhav Thackeray

Who: Eknath Gaikwad shot into limelight when he defeated Manohar Joshi in the erstwhile Mumbai north central constituency in 2004 Lok Sabha elections. He was re-elected in 2009. Earlier, he was three-term MLA from Dharavi and considered as a prominent Dalit leader in Congress. He was also a minister first in Congress government in 1990-95 and later Congress-NCP government in 1999 to 2004. He passed away in 2021.
His daughter Varsha, 49, a lecturer in Siddharth College, joined politics when her father moved to Lok Sabha. She was elected as Dharavi MLA for four consecutive terms since 2004. Varsha was appointed Mumbai Congress president in June 2023. She also won the Lok Sabha election this year from north central Mumbai constituency. She is the only Congress leader in Mumbai who gets along with Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray. She is also known as a prominent Dalit face of the party.
Her younger sister, Jyoti, 47, is now Congress candidate in Dharavi assembly constituency.
Source of strength: Prominent Dalit face; a grip over Dharavi assembly constituency which the family has been winning for 35 years since 1985.
Do say: Three cheers for Dharavi
Don’t say: Adani group

Who: They are a prominent political family of Vidarbha with RSS and BJP leanings. The late Gangadharrao Fadnavis was a senior erstwhile Jan Sangh leader who later joined the BJP. He was elected MLC from Nagpur graduates’ constituency twice and was deputy mayor of Nagpur Municipal Corporation. His son, Devendra Fadnavis, 54, has played a pivotal role in state politics for over two decades. He was first elected as MLA from the Nagpur west constituency in 1999. He is currently Maharashtra’s deputy chief minister and served as chief minister from 2014 to 2019. He also served as leader of opposition from 2019 to mid-2022. Groomed through Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad, he was earlier the deputy opposition leader and the state BJP president.
He is the most relevant BJP leader along with Nitin Gadkari, who commands respect among the rank and file of the party.Gangadharrao’s sister-in-law Shobha Fadnavis, a well-known BJP leader from Chandrapur, was in active politics, along with her brother-in-law since the ’70s. She represented the Saoli assembly constituency four times from 1990 to 2004, and was cabinet minister during the Shiv Sena-BJP government in 1995.
Source of strength: He spots potential which other leaders miss out on; he can turn crisis into opportunity.

Who: The Naiks from Pusad, Yavatmal district, have a sway over the sizeable Banjara community in the district, who have in turn pledged their loyalty to the family through generations. Two chief ministers – Vasantrao Naik and Sudhakarao Naik — have emerged from the family.
Vasantrao, who hailed from the Banjara community, has been one of the longest serving chief ministers of Maharashtra – from December 1963 to February 1975. The family’s clout can be gauged from the fact that only members of the family represented the constituency right from 1952.
His nephew, Sudhakarrao Naik, started his political career as a sarpanch and was later the president of Yavatmal Zilla Parishad for many years. He was a five-time MLA from Pusad and chief minister during the Mumbai riots of 1992–1993. However, following political differences with Sharad Pawar, he ultimately resigned.Sudhakarrao’s brother Manoharrao Naik, was the MLA from Pusad, over various spans. From 2009 to 2014, he was minister of Food and Drug Administration. His son, Indranil, is the sitting MLA from NCP and is a contestant in the upcoming assembly elections. Nilay Naik, Sudhakarrao’s nephew is with the BJP. On July 10, 2018, he was elected unopposed with 10 others to the Maharashtra Legislative Council.
Source of strength: The name – Naik.

AtramsWho: Atrams, a dominant royal family of Aheri in Gadchiroli, control almost all educational institutions in the region.
Raje Vishweshrao Maharaj dominated the political scene of the tribal district for decades. A protagonist of separate Vidarbha and scion of the royal family of Aheri state, he represented Sironcha Assembly, now Aheri constituency, for two consecutive terms. He was also elected to Lok Sabha from Chandrapur constituency in 1977. His nephew and opponent, Dharmaraobaba won the elections in 1990 after defeating Maharaj’s son, Satyavan, and became a minister when Sharad Pawar was chief minister of Maharashtra. He is now a cabinet minister with the Ajit Pawar faction of NCP.Raje Satyavan, Raje Vishweshwarrao’s son, was elected from Aheri constituency twice in 1985 and 1995, but eventually became inactive in politics. He eventually pushed his son Raje Ambarishrao, who has a degree in business law from University of Central England. He joined the BJP, won elections from Aheri in 2014 and became a state minister.Bhagyashree Atram, Dharmaraobaba’s daughter, is married to businessman Rituraj Halgekar. She was the president of Gadchiroli Zilla parishad for five years representing the undivided NCP.
Political rift in the family deepened as Bhagyashree joined NCP (SP); she is now contesting against her father from Aheri constituency.
Source of strength: Royal lineage from tribal district of Gadchiroli.

Who: Ranjit Deshmukh dominated the political scene of Nagpur in ’90s and became the state Congress president and a cabinet minister. However, he left the party on the issue of separate Vidarbha state about 15 years ago and fell off the political map. His elder son Dr Ashish Deshmukh, began as a Congress activist, joined the BJP later, unsuccessfully contested Saoner assembly seat in 2009 and lost to Sunil Kedar of Congress. After subsequent flip-flops between Congress and BJP, he is now contesting as a BJP candidate from Saoner against Sunil Kedar’s wife Anuja of Congress.Ranjit’s cousin, Anil Deshmukh joined the NCP in 1999. The five-term MLA served as the state home minister between 2019 and 2021 – he resigned that year faced with allegations of money laundering and other charges by the then commissioner of police Param Bir Singh. He was arrested by ED and was in custody for one year before being released by a court order.He has now passed on the baton to his son Salil Deshmukh, as a first-time contestant from Katol, where he is pitted against BJP candidate, Charansigh Thakur.Amol Deshmukh, the younger son of Ranjit Deshmukh and Ashish’s brother, is a Congress activist, who unsuccessfully contested from Ramtek assembly constituency in 2019 and lost to the independent candidate, Ashish Jaiswal. This time, he is contesting against his elder brother, Ashish Deshmukh of BJP and Anuja Kedar of Congress as a Congress rebel.
Source of strength: Legacy of grassroots leadership

Who: Sharad Pawar has been in elective politics for over 56 years; has been the chief minister four times, and at 84 remains the most influential leader in the country’s politics. He inherited his political legacy from his mother Shardabai, who was member of the district council for three times and an active member of Peasants and Workers Party. Until recently, his nephew Ajit Pawar, 65, was regarded the undisputed political heir of the Pawar legacy. Ajit, who enjoyed key positions in state politics for over three decades, is struggling to retain his clout after splitting away from the Sharad Pawar-led party – his performance in the Lok Sabha elections was dismal. Supriya Sule, 55, Pawar’s only child and four term MP from Baramati, has taken over the party’s reigns after she was made the party working national president in backdrop Ajit Pawar’s mutiny last year.
Rohit Pawar, 39, grandnephew of Sharad Pawar, is vying for the second term as an MLA from Karjat Jamkhed and is likely to get a bigger role if party makes it to power in the state.Yugendra, another grandnephew of senior Pawar has been pitted against uncle Ajit Pawar from Baramati.
Source of strength: Though the family is at a crossroads owing to the split, its dominance in the state politics remains untouched. Do say: Shahu, Phule, Ambedkarancha Maharashtra!Don’t say: Devendra Fadnavis

Who: Shankarrao Chavan, two-time chief minister of Maharashtra, was a tall Maratha leader from Marathwada who played a key role in the construction of Jayakwadi, Yeldari and other irrigation projects in late 1970s and 1980s. He was known for his loyalty towards the party and respected as a disciplined administrator. His son, Ashok Chavan, 66, was also chief minister for two terms but removed after he became mired in the multi-crore Adarsh housing scam in 2010. Although he switched to BJP this year, people close to him say he did so under pressure of action by central agencies. His elder daughter Srijaya is in the fray from Bhokar constituency, once represented by his father and mother Amita Chavan.Source of strength: Chavans have a sway over Nanded and adjoining districts.
Do say: Marathwada Don’t Say: Vilasrao Deshmukh
Who: Gopinath Munde’s sudden death at 64 just days after his swearing in in the first Modi government was a rude shock for the Maharashtra 10 years ago. The OBC face of Maharashtra politics, Munde is credited to have eliminated the underworld from Mumbai, Thane and Pune by giving free hand to the police to for ‘encounters’ of the gangsters.His elder daughter Pankaja, 45, served as the woman and child welfare minister in the Fadnavis government. Her ambitious remarks of ‘I am the CM in the minds of the people’ in a public rally cost her dear. It was the beginning of her feud with then chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, following which she was side-lined from the state unit of the party for five years after her defeat in Assembly polls in 2019.
Following the changed dynamics after the Ajit Pawar faction of NCP joined the Mahayuti, her enmity with cousin Dhananjay Munde, 49, who is with NCP ended. Dhananjay was looked upon as Gopinath’s political heir. In fact, he is contesting from Parli, the family’s pocket borough, as its sitting MLA in the assembly elections.
Source of strength: Mundes enjoy unwavering support from the Vanjari community which is part of other backward classes.Do say: OBC Don’t say: Manoj Jarange-Patil

Who: Carrying forward the legacy of his grandfather Venkatrao Deshmukh, who was revenue officer with Deshmukhi rights in Hyderabad state, Vilasrao Deshmukh was elected sarpanch of his village when he was young. He was later a part of Sharad Pawar and Sudhakarrao Deshmukh’s cabinet between 1980 and 1995, holding various portfolios.
After a defeat in the assembly elections in 1995, he made a comeback in 1999 when he was made CM. He was asked to resign from the party after the terror attacks on Mumbai in November 2008.
Taking his legacy forward now, his son Amit Deshmukh, 48, has been representing Latur city constituency since 2009. He served as a minister in Uddhav Thackeray-led government for two-and-a-half years.
Source of strength: The family enjoys clout in Latur and Osmanabad.
Do say: Congress Don’t say: Ashok Chavan

Who: They are the most powerful political party in Ahmednagar district. Vitthalrao Vikhe-Patil founded the Pravara co-operative sugar factory at Loni, Ahmednagar, in 1950 – Asia’s first. He later founded many educational institutes and became a politically influential family in Ahmednagar district.
His son, Eknath alias Balasaheb Vikhe Patil was an MP and won eight elections between 1971 and 2009. After the 1991 Lok Sabha elections in which Sharad Pawar’s close aide MP Yashwantrao Gadakh from Congress defeated him in a bitter battle and Vikhe-Patil challenged it in court, which ruled in his favour, the Pawar and Vikhe-Patils became arch rivals.
He later joined Shiv Sena and became the union minister of state for finance in the PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s cabinet.
His son, Radhakrishna Vikhe-Patil, 65, entered Maharashtra assembly in 1995 and also became minister in the Shiv Sena-BJP government. He later returned to Congress and was minister from 2008; after joining BJP, from 2022 onwards he has been revenue minister in the Mahayuti government. His son, Sujay Vikhe Patil, 43, was a BJP MP from 2019-2024 and lost the Ahmednagar parliamentary constituency to NCP candidate Nilesh Lanke. He sought the ticket for assembly elections from BJP, which was denied.
Source of strength: Control over co-operatives and educational institutes in Ahmednagar.
Do say: We are with the party in power
Don’t say: Sharad Pawar

Who: They are among the powerful political families in north Maharashtra. Bhausaheb Thorat, a freedom fighter, worked for peasants and workers in Sangamner and neighbouring areas, and was associated with the communist party. He however supported the Congress in 1963 under the leadership of Yashwantrao Chavan. He subsequently started a sugar factory, an educational institute and was chairman of district co-operative bank of Ahmednagar.
His son, Balasaheb Thorat, 67, entered assembly in 1985, and after winning many elections, held various portfolios including revenue and agriculture, and also strengthened the family in politics after electing members in various positions. His brother-in-law Sudhir Tambe is former MLC and sister Durga is former municipal council president. His sister’s son Satyajeet Tambe is an MLC now.
When Sharad Pawar formed NCP in 1999, BalasahebThorat was keen to join the party but his father prevented him saying the family should never quit the Congress.
Source of strength: Loyalty to the Gandhis and control over educational institutions in Sangmner.
Do say: Always, Congress
Don’t say: Vikhe-Patils

Who: Manikrao Gavit was an Indian politician from Nandurbar district of Maharashtra India. As a member of the Indian National Congress (INC), he represented the Nandurbar constituency from 1980 to 2014, winning the Indian general elections in nine consecutive times – which is a record. His daughter, Nirmala Gavit, was a Congress MLA from the Igatpuri constituency in Nashik from 2014 to 2019. In 2019 she switched over to the Shiv Sena but lost the election. Her brother Bharat Gavit contested the assembly elections on a BJP ticket but lost. In October 2024, he joined the NCP led by Ajit Pawar.
Source of strength: Goodwill of Manikrao Gavit among tribals in Nandurbar district.
Do say: Jai Adivasi
Don’t say: Surupsingh Naik family

Who: Vijaykumar Gavit, 69, was a doctor who entered politics in 1995, and chose to remain associated with the party in power since then. He supported the Shiv Sena-BJP government in 1995 and became a state minister in several departments, including tribal development. In 1999, he aligned with Sharad Pawar and became the tribal development minister in the Congress-NCP government. Before the Lok Sabha elections of 2014, BJP moved court regarding a scam in his department. That year, his daughter Heena Gavit, 37, became the first BJP MP of Nandurbar district, following which Gavit joined BJP to become an MLA in 2014. He uprooted the clout of Manikrao Gavit family and established his siblings in politics.
Heena Gavit lost the 2024 Lok Sabha elections and is now contesting assembly elections as an independent from Akkalkuva constituency. Her sister Supriya Gavit is former ZP member.
Vjaykumar’s brother Sharad Gavit won the 2009 elections as a Samajwadi Party candidate, but is now contesting as an independent from Navapur. His other brother Rajendra Gavit is contesting as a Congress candidate from Shahada.
Source of strength: Control over local bodies and party workers across political parties.
Do Say: We are with the party in power
Don’t say: Manikrao Gavit and Surupsingh Naik

Who: Vasantdada Banduji Patil (1917 – 1989) was Maharashtra’s first modern Maratha strongman and a charismatic, all-round mass leader. He was a freedom fighter who believed in armed resistance. He was famously shot while escaping from prison during the freedom movement.
Vasantdada served as chief minister twice and was also governor of Rajasthan. He shaped the powerful cooperative sector and was awarded a Padma Bhushan for this.
His wife Shalinitai Patil, 93, is a two-time MLA and former revenue minister. His son, Prakash Patil, represented Sangli in the Lok Sabha in 2004. Prakash’s son Pratik Patil held positions in the central government, while his brother Vishal Patil won the Sangli Lok Sabha seat in 2024, as a Congress rebel. Vasantdada’s grand-nephew,Mandan Patil, was Maharashtra’s women and child development minister, and his wife Jayashree Patil, 61, is now a Congress rebel candidate from Sangli.
Source of strength: Push for modern education.

Who: A pioneering educationist, Dnyandeo Yashwantrao Patil (D Y Patil), 89, made his political debut through the Kolhapur municipal council, rising to become an important Congress leader. He also served as governor of three Indian states. Patil received the Padma Shri in 1991 for his contribution to social service. He joined the NCP in 2018.
His son, Satej Patil, 52, is a Congress minister who has held portfolios such as home affairs, transport and state excise. His nephew, Ruturaj Patil, 35, is an MLA from Kolhapur South and is contesting the upcoming assembly elections against BJP’s Amal Mahadik.
Source of strength: Making higher education accessible.

Who: Patangrao Shripatrao Kadam was a Congress stalwart who had a fire in his belly from a young age. From becoming the first in his village to pass the SSC examination, to becoming revenue and forest minister, he was driven by ambition and represented the Bhilawadi-Wangi constituency in Sangli. After his death, his son, Vishwajeet Kadam, 44, was elected from Palus-Kadegaon. Vishwajeet married Swapnali Bhosale, daughter of a top developer in Pune, and is contesting the 2024 assembly elections against the BJP’s Sangram Sampatrao Deshmukh.
Patangrao’s brother, Mohanrao Kadam, 84, was a long-standing member of the Sangli Zilla Parishad and served as its chairman. Mohanrao’s cousin, Vikram Balaso Sawant, 52, represents Jat in Sangli and is contesting against the BJP’s Gopichand Padalkar in 2024.
Source of strength: Sugar mills, banks in Maharashtra, and founding the Bharati Vidyapeeth, a private, deemed university based in Pune.

Who: This political line can be traced to Rajarambapu Patil (1920-84), who was a revered Congressman and a one-time freedom fighter. He held portfolios such as revenue and energy, and led the state Congress in the 1960s. His son, Jayant Patil, 62, joined the NCP, in 1999. He has stayed loyal to Pawar ever since, including through the recent 2022 split. Jayant, now state president of the NCP-SP, has won six terms from Islampur in Sangli, and has held key ministerial positions such as Home and Finance. He faces a candidate from Ajit Pawar’s NCP this time around. His sister, Ushatai Prasad Tanpure, is a Shiv Sena leader who unsuccessfully contested the 2014 state election from Rahuri. This time around, her son Prajakt Tanpure, 48, an MLA with the NCP (SP), is contesting against BJP’s Shivajirao Kardile.
Source of strength: Close ties with Pawars.

Who: Raosaheb Ramrao Patil, or R R Patil, was Maharashtra’s deputy chief minister, holding the home portfolio. A mild-mannered personality, he will always be remembered for his Mission Impossible – banning dance bars and gutkha in the state, in the early 2000s. A six-time MLA from Tasgaon, RR Patil died in 2015. His wife, Suman Patil, 63, was elected as NCP (undivided) MLA from Tasgaon-Mahankal. In 2024, their son, Rohit Patil, 25, is running for the seat in the assembly polls as NCP (SP) candidate, opposite NCP’s Sanjay Kaka Patil. RR Patil’s daughter, Smita Patil, 31, leads the Rashtrawadi Yuvati Congress, which mobilises young women, especially in rural Maharashtra.
Source of strength: Initiatives like ‘Gadage Baba Swachata Abhiyan’ marked him as a leader focused on reform.

Who: Shahu Chhatrapati, 75, Congress MP from Kolhapur, is a blue-blooded politician. The 12th direct descendant of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, he represents continuity in the Maratha legacy in Kolhapur. His son, Sambhaji Raje, 53, was supported by the BJP in the Rajya Sabha in 2016, but he recently launched his party, the ‘Maharashtra Swarajya Paksh,’ to advocate for Maratha reservations, aligning with social activist Manoj Jarange-Patil. Mahurimaraje, wife of his second son, Malojiraje Chhatrapati, 48, initially filed her nomination from Kolhapur North on a Congress ticket, but her last-minute withdrawal led the Congress to support Rajesh Latkar, a party rebel.
Source of strength: Ancestral connection to Chhatrapati Shivaji

Who: Udayanraje Bhosale, 58, is a 13th-generation descendant of Shivaji, and a prominent figure in Satara politics. Known to be outspoken and short-tempered, he switched from NCP to BJP in 2019 and is currently a BJP MP from Satara. He previously served as an MLA from 1998 to 1999, and as state Revenue minister, with the Sena-BJP government. Udayanraje’s uncle Abhaysinh Raje Bhosale, a former minister, remains influential through his son, Shivendra Raje Bhosale, who also switched from the NCP to BJP. Udayanraje’s political career has been marked by controversies that include a murder charge dating to 1999, of which he was eventually acquitted.
Source of strength: Shivaji’s legacy.

Who: Dattatraya Govindrao Walse Patil was a prominent farm leader in Ambegaon, as a result of which his family gained a start in state politics. His son, Dilip Walse-Patil, 68, is a seven-time MLA who has held ministerial roles and currently represents NCP in the state Assembly. A protégé of Sharad Pawar, he joined the NCP in 1999, when it split from the Congress, and won in the state assembly polls that year. He served as a cabinet minister from 1999 to 2009, holding portfolios that included Finance and Energy. He was appointed Home minister in 2021. When the NCP split in 2022, he chose Ajit Pawar’s side, and is contesting the 2024 state election for that party. He faces Devdatta Nikam, a former ally and former chairman of the Bhimashankar Cooperative Sugar Factory and APMC Market in Ambegaon, now running as a candidate for the NCP-Sharad Pawar faction.
His daughter, Purva Walse-Patil, is active in Ambegaon politics too.
Source of strength: Rural education and university in Ambegaon.

Who: One of Maharashtra’s original ‘sugar barons’, Shankarrao Mohite-Patil was a pioneer of the state’s cooperative movement and was even nicknamed ‘Sahakar Maharshi’. A Congress leader, he was an MLA and notoriously criticised for the lavish wedding of his son, Vijaysinh Mohite Patil, in the ’70s. Vijaysinh Mohite-Patil, 80, was former deputy chief minister of Maharashtra from the NCP in 2002. In 2014, he was elected MP from Madha on an NCP ticket and, in 2019, he joined the BJP. His brother, Pratapsinh Mohite-Patil, was elected MP from Solapur on a BJP ticket in 2003, defeating Sushilkumar Shinde’s wife. Ranjitsinh Mohite-Patil, 52, is the grandson of Shankarrao Mohite-Patil. He is a BJP MLC and a former Rajya Sabha MP. Ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, Vijaysinh Mohite-Patil and his nephew Dhairyasheel Mohite-Patil, 47, joined the NCP-SP. Dhairyasheel won from Madha. Dhavalsingh Mohite-Patil, son of Pratapsinh Mohite-Patil, was a member of the Shiv Sena but later joined the Congress. He headed the Solapur district Congress Committee. No one from the Mohite-Patil family is contesting the 2024 state assembly elections.
Source of strength: The family’s dominance in rural Solapur via sugar mills, milk unions, cooperative banks and marketing federations.

Who: Bhausaheb Hiray was the patriarch of one of the most powerful families in North Maharashtra. A close associate of Maharashtra strongman Yashwantrao Chavan, he was a freedom fighter and also participated in the Samyukta Maharashtra movement, which advocated a separate state for the Marathi people with Mumbai as its capital. Hiray held several ministerial positions. A social reformer, he founded many educational institutes and played an important role in the cooperative sector in Malegaon in Nashik district.
Members of the Hiray family, such as Pushpatai Hiray and Prashant Hiray, built on the colossal legacy ofBhausaheb Hiray. His grandson, Advay Hiray, 38, is contesting the assembly elections on a Shiv Sena (UBT) ticket from the Malegaon Outer constituency, where he will go up against Dada Bhuse of the Shiv Sena. Advay was arrested in a loan fraud case, where he was accused of diverting funds to an account of a family controlled cooperative society. He was granted bail in August 2024.
Source of strength: The family’s hold over the educational and cooperative sector, which directly impacts thousands of families in the region.

Who: Chhagan Bhujbal, 77, started his career with the Shiv Sena and was a close aide of party founder Bal Thackeray. He was mayor of Mumbai and, when in the opposition, often made headlines for his aggressive and dramatic tactics in the assembly. Bhujbal left the Sena due to differences with Thackeray and joined the Congress. When Sharad Pawar established the NCP, he followed him. He was deputy chief minister and held important portfolios like Home and Public Works. Bhujbal has been accused of corruption in the Maharashtra Sadan case. He was also jailed during the BJP regime in the state. In 2019, he became a minister in the MVA government but ditched Sharad Pawar for Ajit Pawar’s NCP in 2023. Sameer Bhujbal, 51, nephew of Chhagan Bhujbal, became an MP in 2009 from Nashik. He lost in 2014 and is contesting the assembly elections as an Independent from Nandgaon in Nashik. Bhujbal’s son, Pankaj Bhujbal, 51, is an MLC and was MLA from Nandgaon from 2009 to 2019.
Source of strength: Mass leader of OBCs and controls Samata Parishad, an organisation that works for OBCs in Maharashtra. Also controls education institutes.

Who: Eknath Khadse, 72, started his political career as sarpanch of Kothadi village in Jalgaon in 1984. He was among the first generation of non-Brahmin BJP leaders in Maharashtra who were mentored by the late Pramod Mahajan and Gopinath Munde. An MLA and a cabinet minister, Khadse belongs to the influential Leva-Patil community and is known for his aggressive and sarcastic style of oratory. A chief ministerial aspirant in 2014, Khadse lost out to Devendra Fadnavis. In June 2016, he lost his ministerial post due to charges of corruption and misuse of power in a land deal. After he was denied a ticket in the 2019 assembly elections, Khadse quit the party and joined the NCP. Before the Lok Sabha polls, he made a failed attempt to return to the BJP, something he blames Fadnavis and Girish Mahajan for. Khadse’s daughter-in-law, Raksha Khadse, 37, is the BJP MP from Raver and union minister of state for youth affairs and sports. His daughter, Rohini Khadse, 42, is president of the NCP (SP)’s women’s wing, and the party’s candidate from Muktainagar. Ekanth Khadse’s wife, Mandakini Khadse, is a former director of Mahananda dairy.
Source of strength: Mass leader from Leva-Patil community in north Maharashtra.

Sunil Tatkare, 69, began as a road construction contractor before he joined politics at the local level. He was a three-time MLA from Mangaon and later from Shrivardhan. When Sharad Pawar formed the NCP in 1999, he joined the party and was made a minister. Since then, his political graph has been climbing. He went on to become state finance minister and, in 2019, was elected MP from Raigad. He was, however, embroiled in the irrigation scam in the Congress-NCP government. Tatkare is regarded as one of the prime movers in Ajit Pawar’s coup against his uncle Sharad Pawar, when Ajit split the NCP in 2023. He is now the NCP’s state president. His daughter, Aditi Tatkare, was elected from Shrivardhan and is seen as his political heir. Aditi was minister in the MVA government and now in the Mahayuti government. She heads the women and child welfare department that has been implementing the popular Ladki Bahin Yojna. Tatkare’s brother, Anil Tatkare, was an MLC and is now with the NCP (SP). His son, Aniket Tatkare, was also an MLC. Nephew Avdhoot Tatkare is also in local politics.
Source of strength: Control over local politics, resourceful politician, good connections across the parties.
Do say: Ajitdada
Don’t say: Irrigation scam

The Ranes are an influential political family in the Konkan, with Narayan Rane winning many elections from this region over the decades. A former government employee, Narayan Rane, 72, began his career as a Shiv Sainik and became chief minister in 1999. He was a shakha pramukh, chairman of the BEST committee, and an MLA from 1990 to 2014. He was a minister in the first Shiv Sena-BJP government in Maharashtra and later served as chief minister briefly, in 1999. As opposition leader, Rane made an unsuccessful attempt to pull down the then Congress-NCP government in 2002. Three years later, he left the Sena, joined the Congress, then formed the Swabhiman Paksh, only to join the BJP a year later. From 2021 to 2024, Rane was a Union minister, and in 2024, contested the Lok Sabha elections, winning the Ratnagiri-Sindhudurg seat for the BJP for the first time. Rane’s detractors accuse him of running a political and business ‘empire’ in Sindhudurg. Rane’s elder son Nilesh Rane, 43, is a former Congress MP from Ratnagiri-Sindhudurg and is now contesting the assembly elections on a Shiv Sena ticket from Kudal. His younger brother, Nitesh Rane, 42, is two-time BJP MLA from Kankavli. He has courted controversy over his anti-Muslim tirade.
Source of strength: Narayan Rane is a fleet-footed politician who has always made the right moves on the political chessboard.
Do say: Konkan
Don’t say: Uddhav Thackeray

The Naik family was once virtually synonymous with ‘Navi Mumbai’, turning the satellite city into their pocket borough for three decades. Ganesh Naik, 74, began his career as a trade union leader in the erstwhile Thane-Balapur industrial belt. He joined the Shiv Sena and emerged as a powerful leader in Thane district. He was elected as MLA from Belapur in 1990; was guardian minister for Thane; and was made the Sena’s group leader in the assembly. Naik was a chief ministerial aspirant in the Sena-BJP government. He quit the Sena in 1998 and floated his own outfit. Later, he joined the NCP and was a minister in successive Congress-NCP governments. He joined the BJP in 2019 but, it is said, could not secure a cabinet berth thanks to Eknath Shinde, who also hails from Thane district. Naik has been renominated from Airoli for the assembly polls. Various Naik family members have held important positions in Navi Mumbai over the decades, although their grip on the city has waned. Naik’s elder son Sanjeev Naik, 52, was the first mayor of Navi Mumbai and also MP from Thane in 2009. His younger son, Sandeep Naik, 46, is a former MLA and is contesting the assembly elections from Belapur on an NCP-SP ticket. He will go up against BJP MLA Manda Mhatre.
Source of strength: Deep roots in Navi Mumbai; a native of the city; and an uncanny ability to work the system, having been a grassroots worker.
Do say: Navi Mumbai
Don’t say: Eknath Shinde