MUMBAI: In a setback to the Sharad Pawar-led NCP (SP), former minister Prajakt Tanpure (49) joined the BJP in Mumbai on Saturday. He is likely to be rewarded with the party’s candidature for the Ahmednagar (Ahilyanagar) seat in the imminent legislative council elections. After joining the BJP, Tanpure said he was “ready to shoulder any responsibility”.Mumbai, India. May 30, 2026 - Prajakt Tanpure, former Minister and member of the National Congress Party (Sharad Pawar), has joined the Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP) at the BJP state office in Mumbai. The event was attended by BJP state president Ravindra Chavan and BJP leader Sujay Vikhe Patil. Mumbai, India. May 30, 2026. (Photo by Raju Shinde/HT Photo) (Raju Shinde)That Tanpure would quit the party was more or less clear when he refused to contest the by-election in his Rahuri assembly constituency following the death of sitting BJP legislator Shivajirao Kardile who had defeated him in 2024. His withdrawal, done at the behest of Devendra Fadnavis, effectively turned the election into a cakewalk for the BJP.On Saturday, Tanpure, along with his supporters, arrived at the BJP headquarters at Nariman Point where he was welcomed by the party’s Maharashtra chief Ravindra Chavan. “I have switched to the BJP from the NCP (SP), and I would like to express my gratitude to everyone who supported this decision,” he said after his induction. “I am hopeful that the issues concerning my constituency will now receive greater attention and get resolved. I am ready to shoulder any responsibility entrusted to me by the party.”Tanpure served as a minister during the tenure of the Uddhav Thackeray-led Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government. In the November 2024 assembly elections, he lost the Rahuri seat to BJP candidate Shivaji Kardile. The seat fell vacant following Kardile’s death in October 2025. However, instead of attempting to reclaim the constituency in the by-poll, Tanpure chose to stay out of the contest following Fadnavis’s intervention.“When we met him during this period, he consistently raised matters affecting ordinary people,” said Ravindra Chavan as he welcomed Tanpure into the party fold. “We were impressed by his understanding of local issues and the challenges faced by the constituency. Devendraji urged him to consider joining the party, and after careful thought, he decided to do so. I am happy to welcome a young colleague from Rahuri into the BJP.”Tanpure’s name had figured in an Enforcement Directorate (ED) supplementary chargesheet as part of its money-laundering investigation into the Maharashtra State Cooperative (MSC) Bank case in September 2023. He was discharged by a special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court barely a month ago.NCP (SP) working president Supriya Sule took a dig at the BJP for targeting opposition leaders. “The BJP once spoke of a ‘Congress-free Bharat’,” she said. “Today, however, apart from Ram Shinde, most of the BJP’s prominent leaders in Ahilyanagar have come from the Congress or NCP (SP). This makes me wonder whether ideology still holds the same importance in contemporary politics as it once did.”Meanwhile, speculation is rife that another former minister, Rajesh Tope, may join the BJP. Tope is part of the core committee of the NCP (SP) and considered as one of the last loyalists of Sharad Pawar. He served as Maharashtra’s health minister during the Maha Vikas Aghadi government and earned widespread recognition for his handling of the portfolio, particularly during the Covid-19 outbreak.When contacted, Tope flatly denied the conjecture. “I don’t know where these rumours have come from,” he said. “I am very much part of the NCP (SP) and will continue to work for it.”