MVA celebrates first anniversary with a bang, slams BJP by snatching Nagpur first time in 58 years

The Uddhav Thackeray-led Maha Vikas Aghadi has given a major blow to the opposition BJP defeating the saffron party in all the seats including one in the stronghold of Nagpur in the biennial elections to five seats of Maharashtra Legislative Council.

The MVA has snatched away from BJP the prized seat of Nagpur division graduates’ constituency.

The Congress has won the seat for the first time in 58 years – as the Jana Sangh and subsequently, the BJP maintained dominance in this prestigious seat.

The MVA victory coincides with the first anniversary of the Shiv Sena-NCP-Congress government that is under regular attack from the ranks and files of the BJP.

Congress's Abhijit Wanjari won defeating BJP's Sandeep Joshi, the Mayor of Nagpur Municipal Corporation.

Nagpur is the headquarters of RSS-BJP’s ideological parent - and hometown of stalwarts of the Sangh Parivar.

This seat was represented earlier, among others, by Union Shipping Minister Nitin Gadkari. Prior to him Gangadhar Fadnavis, the father of Leader of Opposition Devendra Fadnavis held the seat.

NCP supremo Sharad Pawar, the chief architect and mentor of the MVA, said that the results are a reflection of the performance of the three-party alliance.

“Clearly the picture has changed…the Congress has won the Nagpur division seat,” said Pawar, adding that people have shown faith in the new government.

“We have just won one seat, the result is not as per our expectations…the three parties have contested together and we have misjudged their combined strength, we will have to work hard,” said Fadnavis.

The BJP had been claiming that the MVA government will be the first to collapse in a year’s time in the state, post the elections.

The MVA has bagged four seats, while an Independent won one seat – in the elections that were held in the backdrop of Covid-19 pandemic.

The BJP won just one seat – that too in bye-elections, the result of which was much on expected lines. The Shiv Sena lost the only seat it contested.

The polls involved bye-election to in Dhule-Nandurbar Local Bodies’ seat and biennial polls to three Graduates’ constituencies of Pune, Nagpur and Aurangabad divisions and two Teachers’ constituencies of Pune and Amravati divisions.

State Congress President and Revenue Minister Balasaheb Thorat said: “The verdict is blessings of the people to the MVA government based on its work in the last one year.”

In Pune Division Graduates, NCP's Arun Lad won defeating Sangram Deshmukh of BJP.

In Pune Division Teachers’ constituency, Jayant Asgaonkar of Congress was leading over Independent Dattatraya Sawant.

On the other hand, in Amravati Division Teachers’ constituency, Kiran Sarnaik (Independent) won defeating Shrikant Deshpande of Shiv Sena.

The sole seat that BJP won after contesting all six was Dhule-Nandurbar Local Bodies’ seat which was bagged by Amresh Patel, a former four-time Congress MLA and one-time MLC, who switched sides.