On November 10, a panel led by the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and Shiv Sena MahaYuti alliance clinched the elections to the head of the board of directors of Gokul, Maharashtra’s largest milk-producing cooperative dairy. But the victory came after the MahaYuti state government amended the rules and allowed four nominated members to vote, thereby upturning a Congress-led panel’s victory in the elections last month. The Devendra Fadnavis-led government’s move has sparked off angry responses: tens of thousands of protesters marched in Kolhapur on November 9 to call out the amendment; the opposition has held this up as further proof of ‘vote chori,’ alleging that the BJP tried to change the rules of the elections after losing the mandate. Even the former Chief Justice of India B.R. Gavai expressed his opposition to such a move in a legal opinion he presented, calling it “a colourable exercise of power.”Why has the Fadnavis government staked so much in a poll battle with just about 5,400 voters?To understand ‘why’ is to understand what controlling Gokul offers: from a dairy with over Rs. 4,100 crore in annual turnover, a chance to directly connect with nearly half a million milk producers and cultivate a massive vote bank as well as an opportunity to create inroads into western Maharashtra – a traditional Congress bastion – and a stronghold of cooperative-based politics.The BJP’s bid to wrest control over Gokul comes at a crucial time – over the last few years, the Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation, better known through its brand name Amul, has been expanding its operations across other states. Such an expansion has stoked controversies. In the past, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu governments have opposed Amul’s entry into their states, alleging that it would weaken state milk cooperatives.Control over Gokul will also help facilitate Amul’s expansion into Maharashtra, critics allege.Meanwhile, BJP Maharashtra spokesperson Vishwas Pathak dismissed criticism of the Fadnavis government’s move. Speaking with The Wire, Pathak said criticism was a part of the opposition’s “habit” whenever they lost power. “Gokul is an independent body and the government of Maharashtra has nothing to do with it. The Fadnavis government had to bring in nominated members only to break the deadlock between the two panels,” he said, referring to MahaYuti directors’ decision to abstain from meetings held to elect a chairperson of the board.A cash cowThe financial clout that Gokul offers is enticing.Data made public by Gokul showed that its annual turnover for 2025-2026 was over Rs. 4,185 crores. The cooperative works with over 5 lakh milk producers through 8,461 milk cooperative societies, which end up collecting over 17 lakh litres of milk everyday from these producers. Gokul disburses payments to these societies, and by extension, to the milk producers at 10-day intervals. On its website, it claims that the dairy returns 76-82% of its total sale money back to milk producers.Thus, holding the reins of power in Gokul means being able to wield financial influence over lakhs of people. “Most of these milk producers are women, and hence, Gokul becomes a key tool through which politicians can establish direct links with women voters,” said Kolhapur-based senior political journalist Vasant Bhosle.The under-the-table commissions that such cooperatives receive can also be a crucial factor, said Bhosle. “Often, directors give out contracts for milk collection vans or infrastructure creation to those they know and earn hefty kickbacks,” he added. Beyond such transactions, control over cooperatives also allows political leaders to extend an all-encompassing influence over the lives of voters.“Cooperative leaders have become barons and run cooperatives in everything from banking to sugarcane crushing to milk production to education,” said Jaidev Dole, author and retired professor of journalism at Pune University. “When a farmer becomes a member of a cooperative, the leader of the cooperative becomes his protector and facilitator. The farmer looks to the leader for everything – from getting admission in their schools and colleges to ensuring his son lands a job at a sugar cooperative, to getting a quick loan from a cooperative bank the same leader runs,” said Dole. For political leaders, running cooperatives becomes a sure shot way of cultivating voters – but through the cooperative’s treasury. “When the same person runs everything from schools and colleges to banks to hospitals to milk societies, a farmer can’t help avoiding their influence in their lives,” he added. With a turnover of over Rs. 4,100 crore annually, any leader who controls Gokul can yield considerable influence over the region’s politics.Inroads into the regionAfter all, western Maharashtra, where Kolhapur is located, is one of the strongest citadels of Maharashtra’s cooperative-based politics. Kolhapur has cooperative structures for everything from dairy to sugarcane cultivation, as well as the manufacture of the famed Kolhapuri chappals. Many of the state’s political figures started off in the cooperative movement and then established their mettle. “In fact, Yashwantrao Chavan, Maharashtra’s first chief minister, was the founder of the cooperative movement in the state in many ways,” said Dole. “As a result, Congress leaders controlled the cooperative movement for many years. In some ways, the cooperative movement forms the foundation of the Congress’ strength in Maharashtra.” “The BJP recognises this and hence, is out to dominate the sector so as to destroy the Congress’ foundation,” he said, referring to the Modi government’s decision to create a separate cooperative ministry headed by Amit Shah, “despite the fact that cooperative societies are a state subject.”For decades, Sharad Pawar has held sway in the sector. Now, with his advancing age and the split in his party, Pawar’s grip has weakened. “Yet, the BJP has not been able to find any leader in the region who can create inroads into the sector and emerge as the largest leader of the cooperative sector,” Bhosle said.Also read: Days After Fadnavis Govt Changes Rules, Mahayuti Candidate Is Elected Chairman Of Key Maha DairyEntry into Gokul could change that. It would allow the party’s leaders to come into contact with the vast network of milk producers and societies, and slowly extend its hold over other cooperative societies.Additionally, Western Maharashtra is crucial electorally. Kolhapur accounts for two parliamentary constituencies: the Kolhapur Lok Sabha constituency and, partially, the Hatkangale constituency, which contains parts of Kolhapur and Sangli districts. The two are currently held by the Congress and the Shiv Sena respectively. The district accounts for 10 assembly seats, of which, 3 are held by the Sena, 4 by smaller, local parties and independents, 2 by the BJP and one by the NCP. The BJP, local analysts said, was sensing a vacuum in the region and control over Gokul would help it establish dominance.According to Bhosle, Patil, the local Congress strongman, stood in the way of the BJP. “That is one major reason why the MahaYuti were determined to ensure that Satej Patil did not win this poll since it would have made him one of the biggest leaders of the region,” he said.Interestingly, despite being a powerful political force in the district, the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena has kept its cards close to its chest on the issue. Sena ministers have been privately criticising the Fadnavis government’s move to appoint directors to take over the reins of Gokul. Only one Sena leader from Pune, Ravindra Dhangekar, has publicly criticised the move.A Sena spokesperson told The Wire that they had not yet been given “the party line” for them to respond to queries on the issue.The Gujarat connectA key point in Patil’s campaign was his allegation that the Fadnavis government and the Modi government were seeking to aid Amul’s expansion in Kolhapur, at the cost of Gokul.“The central government wants to retain just two brands – Amul and NDDB – through which the daily collection of 6.5 million litres in 20 states will be controlled by Gujarat-based entities,” said Patil during the campaign. “The launch of the Sardar Patel Milk Federation in June 2025 was intended to facilitate this move. The attempt is to grab Gokul by hook or crook and sell it to Amul, but the people of Kolhapur will never let this happen.”After all, there is precedence for some of this. In 2024, the BJP-run Madhya Pradesh government handed over to the NDDB the operations of its State Cooperative Dairy Federation and all the milk unions associated with it for a period of five years. The opposition Congress had likened the move to offering a “backdoor” entry to Amul, over the state’s milk brand Sanchi. However, chief minister Mohan Yadav justified the move by saying it would lead to an increase in milk farmers’ income and rise in milk production in the state.In the same year, the Mahayuti government in Maharashtra handed over operations of the state’s Mahanand dairy, the state-wide milk producers federation, to the NDDB for five years, despite protests by Mahanand employees as well as opposition parties. Interestingly, the NDDB had insisted on the dissolution of the 18-member elected Mahanand board of directors as a precondition for a takeover.Pathak, the BJP spokesperson, described such speculation as “baseless political allegations.”“There is no such plan or move. But even if it happens, such mergers/demergers, or consolidation of business is a common practice in business and is required in the interests of the consumers. Political parties can’t be involved in these conversations,” he said.On the ground, though, Bhosle said the threat of Amul’s expansion looms large. “Amul has started procuring milk from producers in the district. If Gokul is mismanaged and if milk producers feel unhappy with it, Amul might swoop in and offer better rates to them and take them away from Gokul,” he said.Such a silent takeover might not require a handover. It may just require mismanagement, deliberate or otherwise.