Poll result to decide rise of Mohol or repeat of Kasba in Pune
Final results for Lok Sabha seats in Pune district to be declared by 5 pm Tuesday, with Pune's outcome expected by 2 pm. BJP and Congress confident of victory.
The final results for the four Lok Sabha seats in Pune district — Pune, Baramati, Shirur, and Maval — will be declared by around 5 pm on Tuesday with initial trends coming in by 11 am onwards. For Pune, with 21 rounds planned, the outcome will be announced early by 2 pm as compared to other constituencies, said officials.
The rise in voter turnout in Pune as compared to the last LS polls has kept the two main contenders, BJP’s Murlidhar Mohol, a former mayor and Congress’s Ravindra Dhangekar, Kasba Peth MLA, guessing even as the duo expressed confidence of winning the polls on Monday, a day before the vote count.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) workers have put up victory banners of Mahayuti candidate Mohol.
Mohol said, “From day one, we were confident of victory in Pune and the country. This is the election to decide the prime minister of India and not for local issues. Pune’s voters think and vote. All exit polls show BJP in the lead in Pune.”
“Let the opposition celebrate and live in false world, but the common citizens of Pune will win on Tuesday. We will win. I am sure my victory photos would be replaced tomorrow by those put up by the BJP today.”
Dhangekar had defeated BJP’s Hemant Rasane in last year’s bypolls at Kasba Peth, the saffron party’s stronghold for 30 years. In the parliamentary poll fray for the first time, winning the seat will be prestigious for former Pune mayor Mohol.
For the Pune Lok Sabha constituency, there would be 21 rounds, Baramati 24, Shirur 28 and Maval 25. The counting will begin from 8 am.
In Shirur too, the contest has become prestigious after NCP fielded Shivajirao Adhalrao against actor-turned-politician from NCP (SP) Amol Kolhe. Kolhe had defeated Shivajirao in 2019.
For Maval, the battle is between two Shiv Senas with Eknath Shinde-led party fielding Shrirang Maval against Sanjog Waghere of Uddhav Thackeray-led party.
District election officials said the administration has arranged 108 tables for Maval, 102 for Pune, 114 for Baramati and 100 for Shirur for EVM machines and postal ballot boxes. Separate arrangements have been made for Electronically Transmitted Postal Ballot System (ETPBS) and Voter Verifiable Paper Audit trail (VVPAT) slip tallying.
District collector Suhas Diwase said, “If everything goes as per plan, each round will take 15 to 20 minutes. It is expected that the counting process will be completed by late afternoon.”