As Maharashtra gears up for its November 20 state Assembly elections, identical candidate names are causing confusion in several constituencies. Candidates and party workers worry that namesake contenders could mislead voters and complicate the electoral process. This is not a new problem. A Supreme Court ruling in April rejected a plea to disallow candidates with similar names, leaving no recourse to prevent potential ballot confusion. After several cases of namesake candidates appeared in the general elections earlier this year, local leaders are once again frustrated by a growing list of duplicate names in these state races.

In the Karjat-Jamkhed constituency, Rohit Rajendra Pawar, the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP-SP) candidate and grandnephew of veteran political leader and NCP-SP chief Sharad Pawar, is up against another candidate with the same name—Rohit Pawar—adding confusion for voters. In Dapoli, the situation is equally complex, with three candidates named Yogesh Kadam vying for the same seat. Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde faction) candidate and sitting MLA Yogesh Kadam faces competition from two namesakes, Yogesh Ramdas Kadam and Yogesh Vitthal Kadam. Meanwhile, Dapoli’s Shiv Sena (UBT) candidate, Sanjay Vasant Kadam, faces a similar issue with two contenders named Sanjay Sambhaji Kadam and Sanjay Sitaram Kadam filing nominations.