BJP emerges victorious in Maharashtra MLC Polls Disappointment for MVA
BJP emerges victorious in Maharashtra MLC Polls
Disappointment for MVA
In a big turn of event the BJP led Mahayuti alliance in Maharashtra comprising of
CM Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena and the NCP of Dy.CM Devendra Fadnavis and Ajit Pawar, in addition to the saffron party rebounded from disconcerting result in the general election by emerging victorious in MLC polls.
Notedly, the BJP fielded five candidates, including Pankaja Munde, daughter of late senior leader Gopinath Munde and all five won. The Shinde Sena and Ajit Pawar’s NCP named two each. All four won.
The opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi – the Congress, and Sena and NCP factions ) broken after rebellions by Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar led) Uddhav Thackeray and Sharad Pawar fielded three.
Notedly, the MLC election is affirmed as a ‘semi final’ for the Maharashtra Assembly election later this year.
BJP leader and Dy.CM Devendra Fadnavis was quick enough to celebrate. Taking to his X, he posted a brief message “9/9,” adding a thumbs-up emoji for effect.
Briefing reporters after the results, Ajit Pawar articulated that Five MLAs supported them and thanked them. When there are elections, allegations are made but he doesn’t think about it.
Voting was held this morning (Friday) for a total of 11 seats.
There were 12 candidates fighting for those 11 seats.
The results were not, perhaps, un-anticipated, given that MLCs are elected indirectly by Assembly lawmakers and if a party has the MLAs (in this case, 23) it will claim one legislative council seat.
The BJP, which fielded five candidates, had 103 MLAs.
This guaranteed four seats and left it 12 short for its fifth. The Shinde Sena has 37, meaning it was nine short. And Ajit Pawar’s NCP had 39 and was seven short. The Mahayuti, therefore, was short by 28 votes to win the nine seats it contested.
Across the aisle, the Congress has 37 MLAs but named only one candidate, giving it 14 surplus votes meant to be distributed amongst its MVA partners. The NCP faction led by Sharad Pawar was supporting Jayant Patil of the Peasants and Workers Party, but its 13 MLAs left it 10 short.
Thackeray’s Sena put up one candidate too, despite being eight votes short. Overall the MVA was four votes short of winning all three, if the Congress’ extra votes were to be cast in favour of its allies.
The key was always going to be the votes cast by those outside – two MLAs each from Akhilesh Yadav’s Samajwadi Party and Asaduddin Owaisi’s AIMIM, a lone CPIM leader, and an independent.
Even then, that is only six additional votes. This would not have been enough for either the Mahayuti or MVA to win each of the seats it was contesting, which suggests there may have been cross-voting.
Ahead of voting by the legislators, there had been fear of horse-trading and poaching, prompting a round of resort politics that has become a standard feature of the Indian electoral landscape.
News Edit K.V.Raman
