Rivals set aside tiff to ensure BJP's rout in Gondia bypoll

Two arch-enemies-former BJP MP Nana Patole and NCP Rajya Sabha member Praful Patel -unexpectedly joined hands to defeat BJP's Hemant Patle in the the Bhandara-Gondia by-election. Patole, a Congress activist who later joined the BJP, had lost to NCP's Praful Patel in the 2009 Lok Sabha elections. Since then Patole was keen to contest the 2014 Lok Sabha elections and defeat Praful Patel.Patole defeated Praful Patel in the 2014 general election by a margin of 1.49 lakh votes. But Patole found that the BJP was not doing enough for the cause of OBCs and farmers. The BJP had promised a good deal for OBCs and a complete farm loan waiver. During internal party meetings, Patole was not allowed to speak on the plight of OBCs and the loan amnesty scheme. He later quit the Lok Sabha and the BJP's primary membership. Patole's main aim was to teach a lesson to the BJP and he got an opportunity during the Lok Sabha by-election. Most of the legislators from Bhandara-Gondia belonged to the BJP and barring some, nearly all the municipal councils were directly controlled by the BJP. Patole found that unless he joined hands with Praful Patel, it would not be possible to defeat the BJP in the by-election. Patole and Patel had been planning to contest the by-election against each other, but backtracked after Congress chief Rahul Gandhi and NCP supremo Sharad Pawar intervened.
The Congress-NCP combine put up a joint candidate and the strategy worked, despite the BJP's best efforts. NCP nominee Madhukar Kukade won the bypoll, following which Patole has emerged as a game-changer in Vidarbha politics.
A farewell to remember
A farewell party organized in the housing department will be remembered for a long time due to the lead taken by additional chief secretary Sanjay Kumar
Janardan Tandel, a senior peon in the housing department, retired after putting in 34 years of service in Mantralaya. Tandel, a popular employee, has been helpful to everyone. When he expressed a desire to organize a small event to mark his retirement, Sanjay Kumar immediately agreed, but no one realized that several retired and serving bureaucrats would attend it. Besides former chief secretary Dinesh Afzulpurkar, additional chief secretary (higher and technical education) Sitaram Kunte, principal secretary (Home) Shrikant Singh, veteran bureaucrats Naveen Kumar, S S Zende and former Cidco managing director Ramarao attended the event.
All these bureaucrats were associated with the housing department when Tandel was working. "It's a rare occasion when so many bureaucrats participate in a farewell for a peon," said a former chief secretary.