The BJP has announced the withdrawal of its candidate from the Andheri (East) Assembly bypoll, clearing the decks for the victory of the nominee fielded by the rival Shiv Sena faction led by Uddhav Thackeray.

The BJP cited cross-party requests for the unopposed election of Rutuja Latke, the widow of Shiv Sena MLA Ramesh Latke. But the retreat is being seen as a tactical pullout fearing defeat ahead of the key upcoming polls to the Mumbai municipal corporation.

Maharashtra BJP president Chandrasekhar Bawankule announced the withdrawal in Nagpur. He said party leader Murji Patel, who had already filed the nomination papers for the November 3 bypoll, will pull out.

“The BJP was sure of its victory but we have decided to take back our nomination in keeping with the tradition in Maharashtra,” Bawankule later said.

Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief and Uddhav’s estranged cousin Raj Thackeray on Sunday had written to deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, requesting the BJP not to contest the by-poll in “reverence to the departed soul, stressing that it had been the practice in Maharashtra.

In his reply, Fadnavis had said that he could not take the decision and it was for the leadership to take the call. Pratap Sarnaik, an MLA from the camp of chief minister Eknath Shinde, too, had made a similar request.

Besides, NCP chief Sharad Pawar had called for the unopposed election of the late MLA’s widow, saying it was useless to hold an election with less than half of the tenure left. The Assembly elections in Maharashtra are due in October 2024.

The Uddhav-led Shiv Sena, however, had not made such a request to its former ally. The party, therefore, linked the pullout by the BJP to the fear of defeat. “The BJP had conducted a survey which predicted that their candidate (Murji Patel) would lose the bypoll by at least 45,000 votes. This is the reason they decided to withdraw,” PTI quoted jailed Sena leader Sanjay Raut as telling reporters during an appearance in a Mumbai court.

BJP leaders in Delhi said that their decision came after a request from Raj Thackeray, taking into account the long-term strategy of sending out a good signal to the Sena cadres.

“There is a sympathy factor attached to the by-election. The Sena cadres wanted the widow of the MLA to win and our gesture will make them happy,” one BJP leader said.

Some BJP leaders, however, said that with the sympathy factor attached to the election, it would have been very difficult for the party to win the seat. “Any defeat of our candidate could have made adverse optics ahead of the corporation polls,” a BJP leader said.

The BJP, after the split of the Shiv Sena, is determined to win the Mumbai municipal corporation polls, likely to be held later this year, seeking to cripple the Uddhav-led Sena in its stronghold.