Bharati Lavekar faces a tough competition amid infra woes

VERSOVA SEAT Opp voices dissatisfaction citing stalled projects congestion

- Megha Kuchik

The Versova Vidhan Sabha constituency is located in Mumbai Suburban district and is part of the Mumbai North West Lok Sabha constituency. Bharati Lavekar, 58, served as a BJP MLA for two consecutive terms and has now been nominated for a third. With 2.82 lakh voters, Versova covers areas including Seven Bungalows, Yari Road, Versova, Lokhandwala, Oshiwara, Veera Desai Road, and parts of Jogeshwari (West). It is a cosmopolitan area, with a significant minority and North Indian population, and includes the Koli community.

Versova was established during the 2008 delimitation of the Vile Parle constituency.

It includes portions of the former Vile Parle and Amboli constituencies. In 2009, Congress candidate Baldev Khosa was elected, but the seat shifted to the BJP in 2014 when Lavekar was elected. In 2019, Lavekar secured 41,057 votes, defeating Congress candidate Baldev Khosa by 5,186 votes.

Lavekar, a PhD holder, received the Ahilyabai Holkar' award from the Maharashtra government in 2000-2001, and the 'Maharashtra Ratna' award in 2005 for her distinguished social work. She was one of two Indians selected by the American government to study the legislative elections in the US in 2006.

According to a report by the Praja Foundation, which assesses the performance of elected representatives, Lavekar ranked 14th overall and maintained a clean criminal record with top attendance. However, she ranked 16th in terms of the quantity and quality of questions raised in the assembly.