The Free Press Journal

‘Ghar Wapsi’ in NCP for ex-mayor & corporator­s

- SURESH GOLANI

Two years after getting erased from the local political landscape, the local Nationalis­t Congress Party (NCP) unit is steadily trying to gain its lost ground in Mira-Bhayandar.

While the civic election is still 19 months away, the NCP, which was reduced from 27 to zero in the Mira Bhayandar Municipal Corporatio­n (MBMC) during the 2017 polls, seems to have already geared into action mode by embarking on a Ghar Wapsi (homecoming) campaign to welcome back their former party colleagues who had jumped into the bandwagon of other political outfits -especially the BJP.

Scores of former NCP leaders, office bearers and workers led by former MBMC

mayor Nirmala Savle, former municipal corporator Dr Asif Shaikh and Ramzan Khatri returned to their party-fold in the presence of state NCP president Jayant Patil and other senior leaders at a ceremony in Mumbai on Tuesday.

While Savle had joined the Shiv Sena and later Congress, Dr Asif Shaikh who

was considered as a staunch NCP loyalist had jumped into the BJP bandwagon on the eve of elections.

The homecoming­s have led to speculatio­ns about the return of a powerful former NCP leader to wrestle the BJP on the virtue of Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) tie-up comprising Shiv Sena, NCP and Congress.

 ??  ?? Ex-mayor Nirmala Savle and former corporator Dr Asif Shaikh along with their supporters rejoin NCP in the presence of state party chief Jayant Patil.
Ex-mayor Nirmala Savle and former corporator Dr Asif Shaikh along with their supporters rejoin NCP in the presence of state party chief Jayant Patil.

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