The Congress, on Thursday, suspended Minister of State for Finance, Sunil Deshmukh and 15 other rebels, who are contesting against the official candidates of the Congress-Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) alliance.

The rebels, including Thane corporators Harishchandra Patil and Kalpana Patil and Amravati Mayor Ashok Dongre, have been suspended for six years.

“We have taken precautionary measures so that no rebel from the Congress and NCP should win,” said NCP Member of Parliament, Govindrao Adik at a press conference at Gandhi Bhawan in south Mumbai. Digvijay Singh, general secretary of the All India Congress Committee, was also present.

Deshmukh (51) rebelled against President Pratibha Patil’s son, Rajendra Shekhawat (42), after Shekhawat was named the Congress candidate from Amravati instead of Deshmukh, the constituency’s sitting Member of Legislative Assembly.

Adik said the Congress-NCP will ensure that no rebel would win. Digvijay Singh said, “Rebels will only manage to get anti-incumbency votes and all parties, including the Shiv Sena and the Bharatiya Janata Party are suffering due to rebel candidates.”