Mahayuti's council poll victory gives it a boost after LS drubbing in Maharashtra
In contrast, the opposition MVA alliance faced a setback, losing one of its three candidates and encountering apparent cross-voting from some of its MLAs
Mumbai: The ruling Mahayuti alliance has received a significant boost with the triumph of all nine of its candidates in the recent legislative council elections. This victory comes as a welcome rebound for the coalition, which had been eager to demonstrate its resilience following a disappointing performance in the Lok Sabha elections.
In contrast, the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance faced a setback, losing one of its three candidates and encountering apparent cross-voting from some of its MLAs. This outcome has thwarted the MVA's strategy to secure more seats than its numerical strength would suggest.
The MVA constituents had anticipated that some MLAs from Ajit Pawar's Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) faction and Chief Minister Eknath Shinde's Shiv Sena group might support opposition candidates, potentially signalling a desire to realign with rival factions. However, this scenario did not materialise. Moreover, voting figures indicate that the ruling alliance successfully garnered support from most Independents and small parties.
Out of 11 seats contested, the Mahayuti fielded nine candidates, while the MVA put forward three. The ruling alliance, with 205 MLAs in its camp, managed to secure 214 votes. In contrast, the opposition MVA, with 69 MLAs, garnered only 59 votes for its three candidates. This suggests that at least six Congress MLAs may have voted for ruling party candidates, with smaller allies also supporting the governing coalition.
The Mahayuti alliance, which has recently launched a bid to retain power in this year's assembly elections through a series of populist schemes, is likely to leverage this council election victory as evidence of its resurgence. All three leaders of the ruling alliance were quick to declare the start of their victory campaign.
Chief Minister Shinde stated, 'A false narrative was spread by some to win the Lok Sabha elections. That effect is now waning. Today's result is just the trailer. We will win the assembly elections'.
Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis added, 'Some were making grand claims that our candidates would lose. We got all nine of our candidates elected. In fact, some opposition MLAs voted for us. We will be victorious in the assembly as well'.
This victory in the council elections has allowed the Mahayuti to signal stability within its ranks, countering speculation in political circles that several MLAs from the NCP and Shiv Sena might defect to rival factions led by Sharad Pawar and Uddhav Thackeray, respectively. It appears that none of their MLAs voted in favour of MVA candidates.
For the MVA, which had been buoyed by its success in the Lok Sabha election, these results serve as a reminder that the upcoming assembly elections are far from a foregone conclusion.
A senior Shiv Sena (UBT) functionary commented, 'The fact is there was no cross-voting from NCP or Shiv Sena. This means none of the MLAs who have been sending feelers to Shiv Sena (UBT) or NCP (SP) dared to defy CM Shinde or Deputy CM Ajit Pawar. This would not have happened if they were certain of strong public sentiment in our favour. We must work harder, as the dynamics will be different in assembly elections'.
The election also exposed fissures within the MVA coalition. Jayant Patil's candidature, backed by NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar, was not supported by Thackeray due to suspicions that Patil had not adequately supported his candidate, Anant Geete, in the Raigad Lok Sabha constituency. The NCP (SP) had expected some MLAs from Ajit Pawar's faction to vote for Patil, but this did not occur. The Congress chose to support Thackeray, giving its surplus votes to the Shiv Sena (UBT) candidate rather than Pawar's nominee.
The election results also demonstrated that most of the 29 MLAs from small parties and Independents opted to align with the ruling parties, further consolidating the Mahayuti's position.