KOLHAPUR

Kolhapur means the city of ‘Kolha’ or foxes, suggesting that this area was once surrounded by forests inhabited by foxes. However, another belief is that Kolhapur is named after Kolhasur, an asur in Hinduism. Yet another story suggests that stone inscriptions from the Shilahar kingdom, which ruled this region from 8–12 C.A.D., mention this area as 'kshullakpur' (the first stage of Jain monkhood) and 'Kalapuri,' a city with beautifully carved mandirs. The Princely State of Kolhapur was established by Queen Tarabai, the wife of Rajaram Maharaj, in 1707. The state was annexed by the British in the 19th century. After India's independence in 1947, the Maharaja of Kolhapur acceded to the Dominion of India on 14 August 1947 and merged with Bombay State on 1 March 1949. Finally, with the implementation of the Bombay Reorganisation Act of 1960, the Bombay State was further divided into Gujarat and Maharashtra, and the region of Kolhapur was then included in the state of Maharashtra.

The Kolhapur district consists of 2 Lok Sabha constituencies, Kolhapur Lok Sabha and partially, the Hatkanangle Lok Sabha. The Kolhapur Lok Sabha Constituency includes 6 Vidhan Sabha segments: Chandgad, Radhanagari, Kagal, Kolhapur South, Karvir, and Kolhapur North. The Hatkanangale Lok Sabha comprises 6 Vidhan Sabha segments, too: Shahuwadi, Hatkanangle (SC), Ichalkaranji, Shirol, Islampur, Shirala.

Within the Vidhan Parishad, the Kolhapur District is represented by Kolhapur Local Bodies Authorities Constituency, the Pune Teachers’ Constituency, and the Pune Graduates Constituency. The Graduates and Teachers’ Constituencies are based on the administrative divisions of Maharashtra.

Based on records from the delimitation reports by the Election Commission, the given chart provides an overview of the changes that have occurred in the composition of the Jalgaon Lok Sabha constituency and the reshuffling of the Vidhan Sabha constituencies with every delimitation that has been done.

The following are the current Members of Parliament (MP) representing Kolhapur district in the Lok Sabha, as of 2024:

The following are the current Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs) representing constituencies in Kolhapur district, as of 2024:

Dhananjay Mahadik (BJP) was nominated to the Rajya Sabha from Maharashtra, representing the Kolhapur district.

Prakashrao Abitkar (SHS) and Madhuri Misal (BJP) currently serve as the Guardian Ministers for Kolhapur district.

The following table lists the current Members of the Maharashtra Vidhan Parishad representing Kolhapur district through various constituencies, as of 2024:

The following are the key administrative heads of Kolhapur district, as of 2024:

There are 15 Urban Local Bodies in the Kolhapur District: 1 Mahanagar Palika, 10 Nagar Parishad, and 3 Nagar Panchayat. There are 1025 Gram Panchayats and 12 Panchayat Samitis.

The Kolhapur Zilla Parishad was established in 1962. At present, the President is Rahul Patil from the Indian National Congress, and with the recent Maharashtra administrative reshuffling (July 2023), Santosh C. Patil, previously the Joint Secretary to the Deputy Chief Minister, was made the Chief Executive Officer. In 2021, the Parishad was awarded the State Level Outstanding Zilla Parishad Award.

The Kolhapur Municipal Corporation (KMC) was established on 12th October 1982. At present, KMC does not have a Commissioner and is under administrative rule. The last commissioner, Kadambari Balkawade, stepped down in 2020 after her term ended. Having served for almost three years, she was the longest-serving commissioner the district had seen. There are a total of 92 seats in the municipal corporation of Kolhapur. Parakhe Baburao Daulatrao became the first mayor of Kolhapur. Ever since the formation of the corporation, parties like the Indian National Congress, the Nationalist Congress Party, and the Bharatiya Janata Party have been in power most of the time. Shivsena, Shetakari Kamgar Paksha, etc, have also been influential players in the corporation.

Kolhapur district has several municipal councils (Nagar Parishads) that serve as urban local governance bodies. These include Gadhinglaj Municipal Committee (considered to be one of the wealthiest in the country), Ichalkaranji Municipal Committee, Jaysingpur Municipal Committee, Kagal Municipal Committee, Kurundwad Municipal Committee, Malakapur Municipal Committee, Murgud Municipal Committee, Panhala Municipal Committee, Shirol Municipal Committee, and Vadgaon Municipal Committee.

The district also has three Nagar Panchayats or town councils that function as local administrative units in semi-urban areas. These are the Ajara Nagar Panchayat, Chandgad Nagar Panchayat, and Hatkanangle Nagar Panchayat.

Kolhapur district also includes the Hupari Nagar Parishad as one of its urban local governance bodies.

In the 2024 Kolhapur Lok Sabha election, there were a total of 23 candidates, out of which five had criminal cases registered against them. Notably, the current MP, Chhatrapati Shahu Shahaji, has one case registered against him. In the 2024 Hatkanangale Lok Sabha election, there were a total of 27 candidates, out of which seven had criminal cases registered against them. Notably, the current MP, Dhairyasheel Sambhajirao Mane, has a clean record without any cases against him.

In the 2019 election, there were a total of 58 candidates across all the Vidhan Sabha segments of Kolhapur. Out of which, around 30% of them had criminal cases registered against them, with about 15% of them having serious criminal cases. The SHS and NCP had the highest number of candidates with serious criminal cases. Out of the six elected MLAs, three have criminal cases registered, with two of them having serious criminal cases against them.

In the 2019 election, there were a total of 67 candidates across all the Vidhan Sabha segments of Hatkanangale. Out of which, around 35% of them had criminal cases registered against them, with about 20% of them having serious criminal cases. The SHS and NCP had the highest number of candidates with serious criminal cases.

In December 2022, the Maharashtra Ekikaran Samiti (MES), a committee advocating for the merger of Belgaum (Karnataka) with Maharashtra, organized a protest from Belgaum to Kolhapur. The protest was aimed at highlighting the alleged violation of the fundamental rights of Marathi-speaking residents in the border region of Karnataka, wherein they feel that the Kannada language is being forced upon them. The event saw the participation of numerous citizens, activists, political leaders, and workers from both Belgaum and Kolhapur. Additionally, the participants called on political parties within the state to observe a one-day Maharashtra bandh as a show of support for the Marathi-speaking populace in Belgaum. This protest highlights the ongoing regional and linguistic sentiments related to the Maharashtra-Karnataka border dispute.

On 7 June 2023, communal tensions prevailed in the city of Kolhapur after some social media status messages showing images of the 17th-century Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb and 18th-century Mysore ruler Tipu Sultan, accompanied by audio messages allegedly objectionable to Hindu sentiments, went viral. After this, a protest was held by right-wing outfits, which soon turned violent with protestors indulging in stone pelting. A mob also entered Muslim-dominated localities and resorted to stone-pelting, destroying shop facades, and overturning hand carts. The police resorted to a lathi charge and got the situation under control. Internet access was curtailed till June 9, and prohibitory orders were issued till June 19 banning the assembly of five or more persons.