“I Was Working for the Organisation Because…”: Pankaja Munde After BJP Names Her As LS Candidate From Beed

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has unveiled its second list of candidates for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, revealing the names of 20 contenders from Maharashtra. Notably, the roster includes numerous fresh faces, marking a significant shift in the party's strategy. One notable change involves the replacement of two-term MP Pritam Munde by her sister Pankaja Munde for the Beed constituency. The decision, long speculated, was finalized yesterday.

VIDEO | Lok Sabha Elections 2024: Here's what BJP leader Pankaja Munde (@Pankajamunde) said on being fielded from Beed, Maharashtra.

"I was there in active politics and will remain to be in it, I was working for the organisation because I could not win in the 2019 (Lok Sabha)… pic.twitter.com/t7Ahnkp2Pi

— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) March 14, 2024

Expressing gratitude, Pankaja Munde said, "I was there in active politics and will remain to be in it, I was working for the organisation because I could not win in the 2019 (Lok Sabha) elections. My name has featured in the list of candidates released by the party yesterday. I am thankful to the party for giving me this respect."

Pankaja Munde suffered defeat to NCP leader and brother Dhananjay Munde in the 2019 Assembly elections from the Parli constituency. Despite her name being floated for nominations in subsequent elections, such as the Rajya Sabha and Vidhan Sabha, the party did not offer her candidacy. Pankaja Munde publicly expressed her dissatisfaction on multiple occasions. However, she has now been granted the Lok Sabha ticket.

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Meanwhile, Pankaja Munde initially declined the Beed Lok Sabha ticket, choosing to step aside for Pritam Munde. "I will not take my sister's place," she said several times. However, following directives from the BJP leadership, she appears to be prepared to enter the Lok Sabha elections.

Here is the full list of BJP candidates and their respective constituencies from Maharashtra:

Candidate Name	Constituency
Nitin Jairam Gadkari	Nagpur
Piyush Goyal	Mumbai North
Dr Heena Vijaykumar Gavit	Nadurbar (ST)
Dr Subhash Ramrao Bhamre	Dhule
Smita Wagh	Jalgaon
Raksha Nikhil Khadase	Raver
Anup Dhotre	Akola
Ramdas Chandrabhanji Tadas	Wardha
Sudhir Mungantiwar	Chandrapur
Prataprao Patil Chikhalikar	Nanded
Raosaheb Dadarao Danve	Jalna
Bharati Pravin Pawar	Dindori (ST)
Kapil Moreshwar Patil	Bhiwandi
Mihir Kotecha	Mumbai North East
Murlidhar Kisan Mohol	Pune
Sujay Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil	Ahmadnagar
Pankaja Munde	Beed
Sudhakar Tukaram Shrangare	Latur (SC)
Ranjeetsinha Hindurao Naik-Nimbalkar	Madha
Sanjaykaka Patil	Sangli

 Read Also | Lok Sabha Elections 2024: Nitin Gadkari Thanks PM Modi, J P Nadda After Being Named BJP Candidate from Nagpur