Shiv Sena increases its tally in Maharashtra upper house

MUMBAI: Shiv Sena emerged as the biggest gainer in the Maharashtra legislative council elections on Thursday as the party managed to win two seats taking its tally in the house to 11. Of the five seats for which counting of votes was done today, the BJP could keep it's both the seats while NCP kept its Konkan seat.

Counting for Osmanabad-Beed-Latur local body constituency was kept pending by the returning officers after 10 corporators from Beed who were disqualified from voting in the election have moved to the high court against the decision. The counting would take place only after the High Court gives a verdict in the case, the officers said.

NCP's official candidate from this Osmanabad-Beed-Latur constituency had backed off at the last moment paving a way for BJP's victory and making the election eyecatcher.

Apart from that NCP lost its seat in Nashik to the Shiv Sena. Here, former deputy chief minister and senior NCP leader Chhagan Bhujbal who recently came out of the jail after two years is suspected to have played a crucial role in switching over NCP's votes to Shiv Sena.

The Congress that had one sitting MLC while going in for the poll has emerged as biggest loser. The party first lost on the negotiation table when it left a seat with sitting MLC - Osmanabad-Beed-Later - to the alliance partner NCP. The other seat where they had a good chance - Parbhani-Hingoli - was lost to Shiv Sena's Viplav Bajoria, while in Amravati where the party had 128 votes, it's official candidate could gain only 17 votes.

BJP was hoping to increase its tally substantially in the election. However, the Shiv Sena destroyed their plans by fielding candidates on three out of the six seats. Shiv Sena's candidate in Konkan (Raigad-Ratnagiri) constituency Rajiv Sable lost to NCP's Aniket Tatkare, son of former NCP stay unit head Sunil Tatkare. Tatkare was the sitting member and managed to keep the seat. In Nashik Shiv Sena candidate Narendra Darade registered a huge win with a margin of around 200 votes while snatching the seat from NCP’s Shivaji Sahane.

In Vardha-Chandrapur-Gadchiroli constituency BJP’s Ramdas Ambatkar defeated Indrakumar Saraf of the Congress by mere 37 votes. While, BJP’s Pravin Pote Patil who is also minister in the state cabinet registered a huge win over Anil Madhogaria of the Congress with a lead of 441 votes. 

The votes were polled for all these seats on May 21.