decades, Jain successfully contested eight assembly polls from Jalgaon. His extraordinary career graph makes these victories even more noteworthy: Jain defected from one party to another and received flak from anti-corruption crusader Anna Hazare. However, what remains to be seen is whether the veteran will be able to work his magic over the electorate in the October 13 assembly polls.
Congress-NCP nominee Salim Patel, who is contesting against Jain, hopes to defeat the political heavyweight. "Things are set to change. People of Jalgaon are looking for a change. The assembly election will witness a miracle,'' said Patel.
Jain was first elected to the assembly from Jalgaon in 1980 as a nominee of Sharad Pawar-led Congress (Secular). He defeated Jansangh's Gajanan Joshi. The 1985 as well as 1990 polls once again saw Jain being elected to the Lower House as a Congress (S) candidate. In 1995, Jain joined the Congress and successfully contested the polls against independent Dr S L Bhangale.
In 1997, he left the Congress to join the Shiv Sena and defeated Congress nominee Ravindra Patil in a by-election. When the Saffron combine came to power in Maharashtra, Jain became the minister for housing and food and civil supplies. He contested the 1999 polls on a Sena ticket and won.
The year 2002 saw Jain leave the Sena to join Sharad Pawar-led NCP. Jain successfully contested a by-election as a NCP candidate and was re-elected in 2004. A month before the 2009 polls were declared, Jain quit the NCP to join the Sena. Now, he is in the fray on a Sena ticket from Jalgaon.
Despite Jain's stint with various political parties, people in Jalgaon stood by him and voted for his victory. Of course, his winning margin has come down from 21,000 in 1980 to 2,500 in 2004. "Though the margin has witnessed a steady decrease, but I am sure jain will win this time as well,'' a senior Sena leader said.
Jain's opponent Patel is counting on the Gandhi family charisma to draw in voters. He is also confident of winning over his electorate on the grounds that Jain failed to develop the township. "He was the elected representative of Jalgaon for over three decades, but he never concentrated on development. The town doesn't have adequate educational facilities, super speciality hospitals or medical colleges. Further, Jalgaon remains just another town in north-Maharashtra," Patel said, who is sure that the entire minority community will support him. .
Patel was associated with the Nehru Yuwa Kendra for well over 20 years and quit the job six months ago and plunged into active politics. "I know Jain is very powerful and politicians are reluctant to contest against him. I have not been made a scapegoat by my party. I am contesting the polls to win, we will initiate change, people of Jalgaon want a `parivartan,'' Patel said.
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