Even as uncertainty prevails over who will form the Haryana government, the BJP-Shiv Sena government has returned to power in Maharashtra. Though the BJP failed to win 200 seats, as some of its leaders hoped, it emerged victorious with help from its ally Shiv Sena.
The BJP-Sena alliance won 162 seats to win the Maharashtra Assembly Elections 2019, even though their combined tally was less than 2014 when the two parties stitched a post-poll alliance.
The Congress-NCP performed better than what exit polls predicted but fell short of posing any real threat to the ruling BJP-Sena combination in Maharashtra.
There are several other interesting facts (some quite shocking) that emerged after the results for Maharashtra assembly elections became clear. Here are 9 interesting facts you need to know:
TURNCOATS TURN SOUR
At least 19 out of 35 defectors who left Congress and NCP to join Shiv Sena and BJP lost from their respective constituencies. Cabinet Minister Jaydutt Kshirsagar, fighting on Shiv Sena ticket, was defeated by his nephew and NCP candidate Sandeep Kshirsagar. Vaibhav Pichad, who moved over from NCP to Shiv Sena before the elections, lost to NCP's Kiran Lahamate.
Pandurang Barora and Nirmala Gavit, who joined Shiv Sena before the polls after defecting from NCP and Congress respectively, lost elections from Shahpur and Igatpuri. Former minister Harshvardhan Patil who crossed over to BJP from Congress also lost to NCP's Duttatray Bharane. There are several other turncoats who failed to win from their respective constituencies.
9 MAHA MINISTERS BITE DUST
A total of nine prominent Maharashtra ministers lost after the Maharashtra Assembly Election Results 2019 were revealed. Two cabinet ministers and seven ministers of state failed to win in the assembly elections. Pankaja Munde, who is the Minister for Rural Development and Women and Child Welfare, lost to her estranged cousin Dhanajay Munde by a margin of almost 30,000 votes. It was a shocker for late BJP leader Gopinath Munde's daughter.
Another major upset was witnessed in Karjat-Jamkhed, when Ram Shinde, Guardian Minister of Ahmednagar and Water Conservation Minister, lost to NCP's Rohit Pawar by a margin of over 40,000 votes. In Maval constituency, Sanjay Bhegade, Minister of State for Labour, Environment, Relief and Rehabilitation, lost to NCP's Sunil Shelke by a margin of 95,000 votes.
Shiv Sena's Vijay Shivtare, the Minister of State for Water Resources, lost to Congress's Sanjay Jagtap in Purandar constituency in Pune district. In Jalna, Shiv Sena's Arjun Khotkar, the Minister of State for Textile, Animal Husbandry, Dairy Development and Fisheries, suffered a crushing defeat against Congress candidate Kailas Gorantyal by a margin of nearly 20,000 votes.
Also Read: Maharashtra Elections: BJP stamps its authority in Maharashtra, Shiv Sena proven junior partner
In Morshi assembly seat in Amravati, BJP's Anil Bonde, the Agriculture Minister, lost to Swabhimani Paksha's Devendra Bhuyar. Shiv Sena's Jaydutt Kshirsagar, Minister for Employment Guarantee and Horticulture, also lost to his nephew Sandeep Kshirsagar of the NCP.
In Aheri assembly seat in Gadchiroli district, BJP's Ambrish Atram, the Minister of State for Tribal Development, lost to NCP's Bhagwantrao Aatram by a margin of almost 15,000 votes. In Yavatmal assembly seat, BJP's Madan Yerawar, the Minister of State for Energy, Tourism, Food and Drugs Administration, lost to Congress's Anil Mangulkar.
NOTA PLAYS SPOILSPORT
A large number of voters in Maharashtra opted to vote for NOTA or none of the above. In Latur (rural), Congress candidate Dhiraj Vilasrao Deshmukh emerged victoriously, but the second-highest number of votes went to NOTA (27,287 votes). In Palus-Kadegaon assembly seat, Congress's Kadam Vishwajeet Patangrao but NOTA emerged as its main competitor with 20,631 votes. In Borivali constituency, more than 10,000 people voted in favour of NOTA. There are several other assembly seats where a large number of people opted to vote NOTA.
MODI RALLIES FAILED IN 3 SEATS
Prime Minister Narendra Modi had held rallies across nine locations in Maharashtra to garner support for the Bharatiya Janata Party. However, the BJP lost seats in three seats where Narendra Modi had conducted rallies. Parli constituency is one such place where PM Modi held a rally, but BJP candidate Pankaja Munde suffered defeat at the hands of her estranged cousin Dhananjay Munde.
SENA EMBARRASSMENT IN BANDRA EAST
The Sena may have proved its dominance in Mumbai but suffered a huge embarrassment as it lost Bandra East, which is home to Thackeray residence Matoshree. Shiv Sena candidate and Mumbai Mayor Vishwanath Mahadeshwar lost to Congress's Zeeshan Siddique.
IN WORLI, MORE THAN 6,000 NOTAs
Even as Aaditya Thackeray managed to win by a margin of 89,248 votes, 6,248 votes were cast in favour of NOTA. If reports are to be believed, 29-year-old Aaditya Thackeray, who made his electoral debut in the Maharashtra Assembly Elections 2019, is likely to become Maharashtra's youngest deputy chief minister.
NO LOVE FOR CONG IN KONKAN BELT
The Konkan belt is the only region in Maharashtra where the Congress could not win even a single seat. In 14 assembly segments spread across three districts in the Konkan belt, Shiv Sena dominated proceedings while BJP also won a fair share. The Konkan belt consists of Sindhudurg, Ratnagiri, Raigad, Thane and Palghar districts. NCP lost ground but managed to win a few seats, but its ally Congress got no votes from the region.
MNS FAILS TO IMPRESS
Even as Uddhav Thackeray's Shiv Sena successfully maintained its grip over Maharashtra, it was a sad story for his brother Raj Thackeray's Maharashtra Navnirman Sena, which ended up with a single seat like it did in 2014. MNS's Pramod Raju Ratan Patil won the only seat from the party from Kalyan Rural as he defeated Shiv Sena's Ramesh Mhatre by a margin of 6,000 votes.
BJP VS SENA
Both seats where the BJP and Shiv Sena went head to head against each other went to the former. In Kankavali, BJP's Nitish Narayan Rane won against Shiv Sena candidate Satish Jagannath Sawant by a significant margin. In Man assembly constituency, BJP's Jaykumar Bhagwanrao Gore won against Shiv Sena candidate Shekhar Gore.
NCP DOMINATES WESTERN MAHARASHTRA
The NCP's dominance is one of the reasons why the BJP-Sena alliance failed to secure a landslide victory in the state. Sharad Pawar's party fought valiantly and secured 54 seats in the state. It is worth noting that NCP has maintained its stronghold in Western Maharashtra, where it won 28 seats.