Abhijit Wanjari and Jayant Asgaonkar retained as party nominees, while Aditi Pohre gets ticket for Amravati Teachers’ constituency
New Delhi, Oct 2026 : The Congress has announced three candidates for the upcoming biennial elections to the Maharashtra Legislative Council from the Graduates’ and Teachers’ constituencies, setting the stage for a multi-cornered contest across five seats.
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge has approved the party’s nominees, according to a press statement issued by All India Congress Committee (AICC) organisation general secretary K.C. Venugopal.
The party has renominated sitting MLC Abhijit Govindrao Wanjari from the Nagpur Division Graduates’ constituency and Jayant Dinkar Asgaonkar from the Pune Division Teachers’ constituency. Aditi Rishikesh Pohre has been fielded from the Amravati Division Teachers’ constituency. Pohre recently joined the Congress ahead of the election.
The announcement came amid preparations by political parties for the October 23 elections to five Maharashtra Legislative Council seats. The Election Commission has scheduled polling from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., with counting set for October 27. The election notification was issued on September 29, while October 6 is the last date for filing nominations. Scrutiny will take place on October 7 and candidates can withdraw their nominations until October 9.
The five seats going to polls comprise three Graduates’ constituencies — Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar (Aurangabad), Pune and Nagpur divisions — and two Teachers’ constituencies, Amravati and Pune divisions. The terms of the sitting members are due to expire on December 6, 2026.
Wanjari is the sitting Congress MLC from Nagpur Graduates’ constituency, while Asgaonkar represents the Pune Teachers’ constituency. The other sitting members whose terms are ending include Satish Chavan from Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar Graduates’, Arun Lad from Pune Graduates’ and Kiran Sarnaik from Amravati Teachers’ constituency.
The Congress announcement comes against the backdrop of discussions among the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) partners over seat-sharing. The Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar) and Shiv Sena (UBT) are also expected to contest some of the Graduates’ constituencies, with the final contest taking shape during the nomination process.
The ruling Mahayuti alliance, comprising the BJP, Shiv Sena and NCP, has also been engaged in discussions over the distribution of the five seats. Reports have indicated that the alliance partners have been staking claims to constituencies, particularly in the Pune division.
The elections are being closely watched because Graduates’ and Teachers’ constituencies have distinct electoral rolls and voting eligibility. The final field of candidates will become clearer after scrutiny and the withdrawal deadline.
With polling scheduled for October 23, the Congress nominations mark the beginning of a formal campaign for the party across the three constituencies where it has announced candidates.
