In Sangole, left seems right for most voters
SANGOLE: For a 10-term MLA, the drawing room of Ganpatrao Deshmukh, which doubles up as his office, is remarkably austere – a creaky sofa held together with plywood planks, couple of plastic chairs, a table. A desktop and a printer sitting atop this table offer the dimly-lit place its only semblance of modernity.
Deshmukh’s dislike for luxury can be traced to his Leftist ideology, which he has kept alive in a region where sugar barons display their wealth through luxury cars, designer watches and lavish treatment to their party workers.
“I haven’t done anything extraordinary in the past 50 years. I merely implemented government schemes. I used my Leftist ideology to offer respite to farmers,” said Deshmukh, 88, a Peasants’ and Workers’ Party veteran.
Sangole, his drought-hit constituency since 1962, gets water for irrigation. The region where only jowar crop was possible in the past is now into horticulture. A booming cooperative weaving mill, promoted by Deshmukh, provides jobs to local youth. His party controls all local self-governments and cooperatives.
Deshmukh, who lost only twice (in 1972 and 1995), is facing Shiv Sena’s Shahaji Patil, whom he has beaten six times, BJP’S Shrikant Deshmukh and Congress’ Jagdish Babar. The NCP has not fielded a candidate here out of respect for Deshmukh, who was a member of party boss Sharad Pawar’s first coalition government. Deshmukh, along with his two PWP colleagues, had quit Vilasrao Deshmukh’s government in 2002 after a dispute with NCP.
“Our MLA is not selfish and does not criticise anyone. He works for us and we for him,” said Vilas Mane, 24. Santosh Lawte, 28, a post graduate in physical education, said hundreds of youth are with Deshmukh because he works for commoners. Voters here – half of who are below 35 years of age – have collected funds to support Deshmukh’s campaign and to gift him a car, said Lawte.
Incidentally, this youth power that gave Bjp-supported Shetkari Sanghtna a lead in this segment in the Lok Sabha polls. This does not faze Deshmukh. “Modi will not work here again,” he said.