Five Maharashtra Legislative Council seats go to polls on October 23. These are special constituencies where only registered graduates and teachers can vote.

Three graduates’ seats are up for grabs: Pune division, Nagpur division and Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar division. Two teachers’ seats will also be contested: Pune division and Amravati division.

The BJP has named three candidates: Smita Jadhav for Pune graduates, Sudhakar Kohle for Nagpur graduates and Kaustubh Gawde for Pune teachers. The Congress has announced three: Abhijit Wanjari, Jayant Asgaonkar and Aditi Pohare.

The ruling MahaYuti alliance has a 3:1:1 seat formula. The BJP contests three seats, the NCP takes Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar graduates and the Shiv Sena contests Amravati teachers.

Nominations close on October 6, scrutiny is on October 7 and withdrawals are allowed till October 9. Counting is on October 27. These seats are seen as a test of educated-voter sentiment in key regions.

The sitting members retire on December 6, so the winners will shape the council for the next six years. Graduates’ and teachers’ polls draw smaller, issue-driven electorates. Parties read them as early signals of how urban, educated voters are leaning.