MUMBAI, July 1 -- Nephew of gangster-politician Arun Gawli, Ahir, 54, entered public life in the early nineties with Gawli's blessing. During the dispute between mill workers' unions and mill owners over textile mill land in Mumbai, he took control of the Rashtriya Mill Mazdoor Sangh, the only legally recognised trade union of the city's mill workers. Rival unions accused him of not looking after the workers' interests, as government policies eventually enabled the owners to sell the mill land in Central Mumbai. Ahir began his political journey with the Congress, switching to the NCP when Sharad Pawar formed the party. Following his assembly win in 2009, he was made a minister by Pawar. In the 2014 assembly elections, he was defeated by the Shiv Sena's Sunil Shinde by a margin of over 23,000 votes. In 2019, when Aaditya decided to contest from Worli, the Thackerays convinced Ahir to join the party; in 2022, he was made a legislative council member....