Mumbai: The BJP emerged a clear winner in the zilla parishad and panchayat samiti elections across Maharashtra, the results of which were declared on Monday.
The tie-up between the two factions of the NCP also seems to have paid off, with the party bagging 165 of the 731 zilla parishad seats. The Eknath Shinde faction of the Shiv Sena has also done much better than the Sena (UBT).
The BJP emerged as the single largest party, winning 225 of the 731 zilla parishad seats across the 12 districts that went to polls, as per data released by the State Election Commission. The NCP secured 165 seats, followed closely by Shinde Sena with 162 seats.
The Congress emerged the largest party among the Opposition by winning 55 seats. The Sena (UBT) won 43 seats, while the NCP (SP) secured 26 seats, as per The Indian Expres
s.
The BJP also won 459 of the 1,462 panchayat samiti seats where polls were held. The Shinde Sena won 302, the NCP 306 and the Congress 197. The Uddhav Sena won 89 seats and NCP (SP) 46.
With these results, the BJP now holds sway over six of the 12 zilla parishads. This reinforces the party’s growing footprint across the state, especially in rural areas that were earlier seen as strongholds of the NCP and Congress.
“The BJP has established itself as the number one party in Maharashtra. The mandate reflects acceptance across rural and urban areas,” Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis said, adding that alliance partners Shiv Sena and NCP had also performed well.
The widening gap between the two Sena factions have also come to light. Shinde’s Sena, which won 162 seats, has gained significant ground in rural Maharashtra, ahead of Sena UBT’s 43 seats.
For the NCP, the results are of significance, coming barely days after the death of former deputy CM Ajit Pawar, who had pushed for a possible merger. The NCP’s decision to fight the zilla parishad polls together in Pune and coordinate seat-sharing in at least 10 other districts appears to have helped both factions revive their rural performance.