Maharahtra Bypolls: BJP wins 22 zilla parishad seats; MVA 46; Cong shines in Panchayat Samitis

The bypolls to the zilla parishad Panchayat Samiti seats saw a voter turnout of around 63 per cent. The by-elections were necessitated following a Supreme Court ruling on quota for OBCs in local bodies. 

Mumbai: The BJP on Wednesday won 22 of the 85 zilla parishad seats across half a dozen Maharashtra districts where bypolls where held, while the Congress bagged 36 of the 144 Panchayat Samiti seats which were on offer under their jurisdiction, according to results announced by the State Election Commission (SEC).

By-elections for 84 vacant seats across 6 Zilla Parishads (ZPs) - Dhule, Nandurbar, Akola, Washim, Nagpur, Palghar and also 141 seats in 37 Panchayat Samitis falling under the jurisdiction of these districts were held on Tuesday and the votes were counted on Wednesday. 

Candidates in one ZP seat (total 85) and three Panchayat Samiti wards (total 144) were elected unopposed. Of the 85 seats on offer in six ZPs, the BJP won the highest 22, while the Congress, the NCP and the Shiv Sena - all constituents of the ruling MVA - bagged 19, 15 and 12 seats, respectively, (total 46). Independents secured four seats, the CPI (M) one and others won 12 seats, the SEC said.