Overview

• Sanjay Jagtap, who led the Pune district Congress for nine years and served as Purandar’s MLA, will formally join the BJP at a Saswad rally on July 16.
• His switch follows earlier defections by Sangram Thopte and Harshvardhan Patil, reflecting the BJP’s strategy of recruiting influential local families to strengthen its rural base.
• Administrative officials say Jagtap’s alignment with the BJP and sitting MLA Vijay Shivtare will smooth land acquisition for the stalled Purandar airport project.
• Jagtap’s exit compounds Congress’s organizational collapse after its worst-ever 2024 performance in Pune district, where it failed to win any seats.
• The NCP and Shiv Sena now face heightened challenges as the BJP tightens its grip on rural Pune ahead of the upcoming civic polls.