Mumbai:

In a blow to the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) and the Opposition in Maharashtra, the Samajwadi Party has decided to quit the alliance after a controversial remark from a close aide of Uddhav Thackeray on the demolition of the Babri Masjid. 

On the 32nd anniversary of the Babri Mosque demolition, Milind Narvekar, a Shiv Sena (UBT) leader posted a photo of the mosque, accompanied by a quote from Shiv Sena patriarch Balasaheb Thackeray which read, “I am proud of those who did this.”

M Narvekar’s post also featured images of Uddhav Thackeray, Aaditya Thackeray and himself.

pic.twitter.com/3nZYC4EK0e

— Milind Narvekar (@NarvekarMilind_) December 5, 2024

The Samajwadi Party has two MLAs in the Maharashtra Assembly. After MVA parties skipped the oath-taking ceremony today, Samajwadi Party state president Abu Asim Azmi and party leader Rais Shaikh defied the boycott call and took their oaths.

“Samajwadi Party can never remain with communal ideology, hence we separate ourselves from Maha Vikas Aghadi,” Mr Azmi said in a statement. 

सांप्रदायिक विचारधारा के साथ समाजवादी पार्टी कभी नहीं रह सकती इस लिए हम खुदको महविकास आघाड़ी से अलग करते है।#SamajwadiParty#MahaVikasAghadi#Maharashtrapic.twitter.com/uMnlL97KDi

— Abu Asim Azmi (@abuasimazmi) December 7, 2024

“An advertisement was given by Shiv Sena (UBT) in a newspaper congratulating those who demolished Babri masjid. His (Uddhav Thackeray) aide has also posted on X hailing the demolition of the mosque,” Mr Azmi said, as quoted by news agency PTI. “We are quitting the MVA. I am speaking to (Samajwadi Party president) Akhilesh Singh Yadav. If anyone in the MVA speaks such language, what is the difference between the BJP and them? Why should we stay with them?” 

Besides the two Samajwadi Party wins in the Maharashtra elections, the Congress contested 103 seats but managed to win only 16. The Shiv Sena (UBT), which fielded candidates in 89 constituencies, won 20 seats, while the NCP, led by Sharad Pawar, contested 87 seats and secured victory in just 10.

“Milind Narvekar, who is from Uddhav Thackeray’s party, posted a tweet, and we have only responded to him. The MVA was formed on two key principles: protecting the Constitution and upholding secular values. Shiv Sena has received votes in the Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha in the name of the MVA, with support from people of all religions and secular-minded individuals,” said Samajwadi leader Rais Shaikh. 

The Mahayuti alliance, comprising the BJP, Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena faction, and Ajit Pawar’s NCP faction, won 230 of the 288 seats. This was followed by the swearing-in of Devendra Fadnavis as Chief Minister, with Mr Shinde and Mr Pawar taking oath as Deputy Chief Ministers on December 5.

“Shiv Sena should reflect on this. A minimum understanding was established to set aside radical Hindu ideologies, but if such a radical stance is adopted, parties like the Samajwadi Party and others will need to reconsider their position. This is our perspective. We want Uddhav’s Shiv Sena to address this issue and clarify why such sentiments are being expressed,” Mr Shaikh added. 

Newly-elected MLAs of the MVA alliance staged a walkout during the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly’s oath-taking ceremony today, alleging the ruling Mahayuti coalition’s victory was engineered through manipulation of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs). 

MVA leaders gathered near the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj statue at the Maharashtra Assembly to explain their stance. 

“We boycotted the oath-taking ceremony today as democracy is being murdered by the use of EVMs. This (the results of the Maharashtra Assembly elections) is not the mandate of the public it is the mandate of EVM and the Election Commission of India,” said Aditya Thackeray.

Other senior opposition leaders, including Nana Patole of Congress and Jitendra Awhad of the NCP, echoed concerns over what they termed an “undemocratic attitude” of the ruling alliance and reiterated demands for elections to be conducted using ballot papers instead of EVMs.

New Delhi:

The ruling Mahayuti sailed past the majority mark – 145 – in early leads as counting began Saturday for the Maharashtra Assembly election. The alliance – fronted by the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Shiv Sena and Nationalist Congress Party factions led by Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar – was ahead in 175 seats by 9.33 am. The Maha Vikas Aghadi  – the Congress and the Sena and NCP groups led by Uddhav Thackeray and Sharad Pawar – is ahead in 81.

Within the Mahayuti, it is the BJP that is ahead; the saffron party is leading in 96 of the 149 seats it is contesting. The Shinde Sena is ahead in 49 of the 81 it is contesting and Ajit Pawar’s NCP 30 of 59.

Across the aisle in the MVA, the Congress is leading in 32 of the 101 seats it has entered, while Sharad Pawar’s NCP is ahead in 24 of 86 and the Thackeray Sena in 24 of 95.

Big Names

Outgoing Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and his deputy, Ajit Pawar, and Aaditya Thackeray, the son of ex-Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, are among the many big names contesting this election.

Also in the spotlight is Zeeshan Siddiqui of the Ajit Pawar NCP faction; Mr Siddiqui is the son of ex-Maharashtra minister Baba Siddiqui, who was shot dead by the Lawrence Bishnoi gang last month.

Eknath Shinde faces Thackeray Sena leader Kedar Dighe – the nephew of his mentor, Anand Dighe – for Thane’s Kopri-Pachpakhadi seat. At 9.30 am Mr Shinde led by over 4,000 votes.

Ajit Pawar faces a Pawar vs Pawar battle against uncle Sharad Pawar’s grandnephew, Yugendra Pawar, in the family stronghold of Baramati. Mr Pawar is leading that contest, for now.

READ | Ajit Pawar Ahead Of Nephew Yugendra In Baramati Family Battle

Aaditya Thackeray is up against ex-Congress veteran Milind Deora, who jumped to the Shinde Sena faction. The two are contesting the Worli Assembly seat, where Thackeray junior is 500 votes ahead.

READ | “My Karmabhoomi“: Milind Deora On Worli Battle vs Aaditya Thackeray

Zeeshan Siddiqui – who declared he would carry on his father’s “roar” – faces Varun Sardesai, Uddhav Thackeray’s nephew, in Bandra (East). Initial trends for this seat have not yet been declared.

Voting for this election took place in a single phase on Wednesday.

The Maharashtra Assembly has 288 seats and the majority mark is 145.

What Exit Polls Said

The MVA had only been given a (very) slim chance of upsetting the in-power BJP-led alliance’s applecart in the final election of the year; only one of 11 exit polls studied by NDTV believed it can win. Three others were on the fence but even they tilted to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s party.

An average of those 11 exit polls gives the Mahayuti 155 seats and the MVA only 120, with smaller parties and independent candidates expected to get the remaining 13.

But a health warning: exit polls often get it wrong.

A majority of those exit polls predicted a big win for the Mahayuti.

READ | NDA Has Edge But 3 Exit Polls Predict Hung Assembly

Across the aisle, only one – Electoral Edge – expected the Congress’ alliance to win and, even then, by five seats only, with 20 seats from smaller parties and independents in play for the BJP.

However, Thackeray Sena MP Sanjay Raut has rubbished the predictions, pointing to incorrect previews of the Haryana and Jammu and Kashmir elections and insisting the MVA will win.

READ | Mahayuti vs MVA On “Fraud” Exit Polls As Maharashtra Awaits Result

“They said Congress would win Haryana but what happened? They said Modiji would get 400 seats in the Lok Sabha… but what happened there? You will see… we will win 160-165 seats,” he declared.

Voter Turnout

Polling on Wednesday saw a voter turnout of 65.1 per cent – the highest since the 63.4 per cent recorded for the 2004 and 2014 elections and the second highest since 71.5 per cent in 1995.

The increased voter turnout has been flagged by both alliances as ‘proof positive’ that their side will emerge triumphant when votes are counted, although conventional wisdom suggests high voter turnout is bad news for the incumbent party or candidate.

READ | 65.1% Voter Turnout Is 2nd Highest 1990s, Highest In A Decade

Senior BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis declared, “Increase in voting percentage means it is in favour of the current government… it means people are supporting the current government.”

Race For Chief Minister’s Post

Meanwhile, away from the ballot boxes there is jostling and shoving offstage as senior figures within each alliance bid to replace Mr Shinde as Chief Minister. And that race looks to have exposed cracks in each alliance, with each party talking up its candidates for the top post.

Claims by the Congress’ state unit chief, Nana Patole, that his party would emerge as the single-largest and therefore be in pole position to pick the Chief Minister have been contested by Mr Raut, who said the final decision will be taken after victory is confirmed and by all stakeholders.

READ | Who Will Be Chief Minister? NDA, MVA Ministers Stake Claim

In the Mahayuti, the Shinde Sena and the BJP appear to be at odds on the same issue, with the former batting for Mr Shinde to continue and the latter pitching Mr Fadnavis, who was the Chief Minister when the BJP and (then) undivided Sena were in power between 2014 and 2019.

And the NCP faction led by Ajit Pawar has thrown its hat in the ring too, on the back of hopes it will emerge as the ‘kingmaker’, although the question of which side it will help crown was waved away.

What Happened In 2019?

The 2019 election resulted in a thumping win for the BJP and the undivided Sena; the saffron party won 105 seats (down 17 from 2014) and its ally 56 (down seven).

However, two long-time allies fell out, quite spectacularly, in the following days after they failed to agree a power-sharing deal. Mr Thackeray then led his Sena into a surprise alliance with the Congress and Sharad Pawar’s NCP (then also undivided) to shut out a furious BJP.

Much to the surprise of many, the ruling tripartite alliance lasted for nearly three years despite the divergent political beliefs and ideologies of the Sena and the Congress-NCP.

Eventually, it was an internal rebellion led by Sena leader Eknath Shinde that ousted the MVA government. Mr Shinde led Sena lawmakers into a deal with the BJP, forcing Mr Thackeray to resign and allowing himself to be named as the new Chief Minister.

The NCP split a year later in a near-identical process that saw Ajit Pawar and lawmakers loyal to him joining the BJP-Shinde Sena, and he then became a Deputy Chief Minister.

Since then, Maharashtra politics has been roiled in controversy that extended to the Supreme Court, which heard petitions and cross-petitions on disqualification of MLAs and, in the build-up to this election, pleas on which Sena and NCP faction is the ‘real’ one.

With input from agencies

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