India, March 16 -- The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Sunday declared the names of three candidates for the upcoming Maharashtra Legislative Council bypolls, including a close aide of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and a former MLA. The by-elections, scheduled for March 27, were triggered after five sitting MLCs vacated their seats following their victories in the November 2024 Assembly elections.

Among the five vacant seats, three were held by BJP members, while one each belonged to the Shiv Sena and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP). All three parties are part of the ruling Mahayuti coalition in Maharashtra, giving them a strong numerical advantage in the 288-member Legislative Assembly.

The BJP's candidates for the bypolls incl...