Sharad Pawar U-Turn On Vandana Chavan After Negative Vibes From BJD

Vandana Chavan, a leader of Sharad Pawar's NCP, was briefly considered as the opposition's candidate for the number two post in the Rajya Sabha after the chairman, Vice President Venkaiah Naidu. But Sharad Pawar's Nationalist Congress Party backtracked on her candidature after it became clear that Naveen Patnaik's Biju Janata Dal will not support her during the voting.

Vandana Chavan has been a Rajya Sabha member of the NCP or Nationalist Congress Party since 2012.

"As a woman, I will be very happy if vice chairman becomes a woman, no matter to which party she belongs to," she said as reports emerged of the opposition choosing her as its consensus candidate.

The 57-year-old, a three-time councillor between 1992 and 2007, was mayor of Pune in 1997-1998.

Ms Chavan's sister Vinita Kamte was married to Ashok Kamte, one of the officers who died fighting 26/11 terrorists.

Ms Chavan's father Vijayarao Mohite was a veteran lawyer and mentor to many leading criminal lawyers. Her mother Jayashree Mohite retired as a part-time lecturer. Her husband Hemant Chavan is also a lawyer.

In 2014, Ms Chavan was in the middle of a controversy when she was accused of animal cruelty by a neighbour who owned cats. The politician in turn accused her neighbour, a Pune-based professor, of "wilful slander" and demanded a compensation of Rs 5 crore.

Ms Chavan is credited with heading initiatives in Pune targeting citizen participation, empowerment of women and sustainable development.