NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar on Sunday acknowledged that the Maharashtra election results were not as expected, stressing that the outcome was a decision made by the people.
The veteran leader faced a historic defeat in the Maharashtra polls, with the NCP faction led by him securing only 10 seats in the 288-member assembly. In contrast, the Ajit Pawar-led NCP won 41 seats.
The Mahayuti alliance, comprising the BJP, Shiv Sena led by Eknath Shinde, and Ajit Pawar’s NCP, triumphed with 132, 57, and 41 seats, respectively, while the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi was reduced to just 46 seats.
Pawar acknowledged that the NCP led by his nephew and Deputy CM Ajit Pawar won more seats, but pointed out, “Everyone knows who founded the NCP.”
Discussing the factors behind the defeat, Pawar highlighted the influence of the 'Ladki Bahin' scheme, increased women's voter turnout, and religious polarisation, all of which he said may have contributed to the Mahayuti’s victory.
"The Ladki Bahin scheme and religious polarisation played a role. Women's participation in large numbers could be a key reason for the Mahayuti sweep in Maharashtra. We will study the reasons for the debacle and take necessary steps," he said.
"The MVA coalition put in a lot of hard work but the desired results were not achieved even though people responded positively to MVA during campaigning," the NCP (SP) chief added.
He said the MVA was more confident after achieving success in Lok Sabha elections, adding that more work needs to be done.
When asked if he was jolted by the poll outcome, Pawar said, "The poll results were declared yesterday. Today I am in Karad. Those who were demoralised would have sat at home".
(With inputs from PTI)
