“Not in politics for any gains…”: BJP candidate Ujjwal Nikam

Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], May 3 (ANI): Bharatiya Janata Party’s candidate from Mumbai North Central Lok Sabha seat, Ujjwal Nikam on Friday said that he is not in politics for any personal gains, adding that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has increased the prestige of the country around the globe and he wants to contribute to his vision.

“This is an important step in my life. For the common masses, Prime Minister Modi has worked a lot. He has increased the prestige of the country around the globe and he wants to contribute to his vision. No one can call our nation a banana country. I am not in politics for any gain. I have fought against organised crime, I have never fought from the accused side ever. A post of Public prosecutor was not even well known in those days. I am glad I could put a stamp on it,” Ujjwal Nikam told ANI.

Ahead of filing his nomination for Lok Sabha elections, Special Public Prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam submitted his resignation from all his cases where he was appearing as Special Public Prosecutor. He was handling cases related to the 1993 blasts, the 26/11 terror attacks and the Aurangabad arms haul case but he says that if needed, he will take back these cases as a Special Public Prosecutor.

“I cannot be a prosecutor in my cases anymore but I will request the government about it if the need arises,” Nikam said.

Earlier today, Ujjwal Nikam offered prayers at the Siddhivinayak Temple. He is pitted against Congress’ Varsha Gaikwad from the Mumbai North Central Lok Sabha seat.

Nikam, a senior public prosecutor, has appeared for the government in several high-profile cases, including the 26/11 Mumbai attack case.

The BJP decided to drop sitting MP Poonam Mahajan, the two-time party MP from the Mumbai North Central seat. In 2014, she secured victory from the Mumbai North Central seat, triumphing over incumbent MP Priya Dutt, daughter of the late actor and Congress leader Sunil Dutt. Poonam repeated this success in 2019 too.

Maharashtra, with its 48 Lok Sabha seats, is the second-largest contributor to the Lower House of Parliament after Uttar Pradesh. In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the BJP won 23 out of 25 contested seats, while the undivided Shiv Sena secured 18 out of 23 seats.

The undivided NCP, part of the opposition alliance, contested 19 seats and won four. Following the split in the Shiva Sena 2022, the Eknath Shinde faction aligned with the BJP. Mumbai North-Central will go to the polls on May 20.