In Maharashtra MLC polls, BJP suffers jolt after MVA wins Nagpur teachers’ seat, leads in two others
The Hindu
While the results are yet to be fully declared, the MVA is in driver’s seat with the ruling BJP managing to win only the Konkan teachers’ constituency
Belying tall claims of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of sweeping all five seats in the Maharashtra Legislative polls, the opposition tripartite Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) came out on top, with the MVA trouncing the BJP in the critical Nagpur teachers’ constituency and leading in two other seats in the MLC results on Thursday.
While the results were yet to be fully declared and counting for three seats ongoing till late evening, the MVA was clearly in the driver’s seat with the ruling BJP managing to win only the Konkan teachers’ constituency.
Independent candidate Sudhakar Adbale, who was picked by the MVA, managed to score an upset win in the saffron party’s stronghold of Nagpur — a bastion of tall BJP leaders like Devendra Fadnavis and Nitin Gadkari — winning more than 16,000 votes and supplanting the BJP’s sitting MLC Nago Ganar, who could secure only 8,000 votes.
“The MVA has given the BJP a blow in birthplace of its parent organisation [the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh],” tweeted a jubilant Maharashtra Congress chief Nana Patole.
A highlight in the MLC polls was the high stakes Nashik graduates’ constituency seat, which had witnessed much drama in the run-up to the electoral contest.
According to sources, ‘rebel’ Congress leader Satyajeet Tambe, contesting as an independent, had secured a comfortable margin over his nearest rival — independent Shubhangi Patil who is being backed by the MVA
The Maharashtra Congress had been left red-faced and schisms had emerged within the MVA troika (of the NCP, the Congress and the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena) after the Congress’ chosen candidate for the Nashik seat — three-time MLC Sudhir Tambe — had withdrawn his nomination at the eleventh hour in defiance of the party high command.