Assembly Election Results Live: Fadnavis, Thackeray Claim Maharashtra Victory But With A Weaker Majority
Follow live updates from the 2019 Maharashtra and Haryana assembly election results here.
KEY HIGHLIGHTS
Fadnavis Says BJP Got Fewer Seats, But Better Strike Rate
The BJP has won fewer seats compared to the 2014 Assembly polls, but its “strike rate” this time is better, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said on Thursday.
Fadnavis also said that the BJP and Shiv Sena will go by what was “pre-decided” between them on sharing of power. He noted the BJP suffered in the state elections due to rebellion by some party leaders, but added that 15 of those are in touch with him.
Fadnavis, however, expressed shock at the defeat of party candidates Udayanraje Bhosale in the Satara Lok Sabha bypoll and minister Pankaja Munde in Parli Assembly seat.
In fact, it is time to celebrate and not analyse. But if we look at the result, the BJP had in 2014 contested 260 seats and won 122. This time, we fought 164 and are likely to get 105. Our strike is rate better, we won 70 percent of the seats.Devendra Fadnavis, Chief Minister, Maharashtra
Eight Haryana Ministers Lose Assembly Elections
Eight Haryana ministers lost the assembly elections, which saw just two of the 10 ministers fielded by the ruling BJP returning to the state assembly.
Cabinet minister and five-time MLA Anil Vij retained his traditional bastion of Ambala Cantonment, whereas minister of state Banwari Lal emerged victorious from Bawal.
Vij drubbed Congress rebel Chitra Sarwara, who fought as independent, by over 20,000 votes.
The ministers who lost the elections are Ram Bilas Sharma (Mahendragarh), Capt. Abhimanyu (Narnaund), Om Prakash Dhankar (Badli), Kavita Jain (Sonipat), Krishan Lal Panwar (Israna), Manish Kumar Grover (Rohtak), Krishan Kumar Bedi (Shahbad), and Karan Dev Kamboj (Radaur). The saffron party's idea of shifting minister Karan Dev Kamboj from Indri to Raduar also failed to yield positive results.
Khattar retained his Karnal constituency.
Grover and Kamboj lost to their rivals by just over 2,000 votes, whereas other ministers faced defeat by over 10,000 votes.
Lone woman minister in the Khattar cabinet, Kavita Jain, a three-time MLA, lost her traditional Sonipat seat to Surender Panwar of the Congress by a margin of over 32,000 votes.
Among the other prominent faces for the ruling BJP who tasted defeat in the elections was its state president Subhash Barala. He lost the contest from Tohana to Jannayak Janta Party candidate Devender Singh by a huge margin of 52,302 votes.
The opposition Congress too witnessed a major upset in Kaithal, where senior party leader Randeep Singh Surjewala lost to BJP's Leela Ram. The three-time legislator and Congress Party's chief spokesperson was defeated by a margin of 1,246 votes. It was a second blow to Surjewala, who had tasted defeat in the Jind byelections early this year.
Congress candidate and former Haryana Assembly speaker Kuldeep Sharma also faced defeat at the hands of BJP nominee Nirmal Rani from Ganaur.
With PTI inputs.
Fadnavis, Patil, Thackeray Sail Through In Maharashtra Polls
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, state BJP president Chandrakant Patil and Shiv Sena leader Aaditya Thackeray were among the prominent winners in the assembly polls on Thursday.
Fadnavis, the first BJP chief minister of Maharashtra, retained his Nagpur South West seat for the fifth consecutive term, while Thackeray, the first member of his family to contest polls, emerged victorious in Worli, central Mumbai. Patil, a two-time MLC and a sitting minister, who contested his first assembly polls, won from Kothurd in Pune.
Other prominent winners included Nitesh Rane of the BJP from Kankavli in the Konkan region and NCP leader Ajit Pawar from Baramati in Pune district. Rane had won the seat on a Congress ticket in 2014 and joined the BJP on the eve of Oct. 21 elections.
Former Maharashtra Chief Ministers Ashok Chavan and Prithviraj Chavan, both Congressmen, won from Bhokar (Nanded district) and Karad South (Satara district), respectively. State Congress president Balasaheb Thorat retained his Sangamner assembly seat in Ahmednagar district for the eight time.
Among the prominent losers were state’s Women and Child Welfare Minister Pankaja Munde of the BJP from Parli in Beed district and EGS Minister Jaydutt Kshirsagar, who had quit the NCP to join the Shiv Sena after the Lok Sabha polls.
Another prominent politician, Harshvardhan Patil, who switched to the BJP from the Congress on the eve of the assembly polls, was defeated by Dattatraya Bharne, the sitting NCP legislator in Indapur, Pune district.
With PTI inputs
PM Modi Reacts To Election Results
Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed BJP workers in New Delhi while thanking voters of Haryana and Maharashtra.
Modi praised Devendra Fadnavis and Manohar Lal Khattar saying that being first-time chief ministers they kept working towards people's welfare and the people have put their faith in them again.
7PM Update: Fadnavis Government Set For Second Term
The BJP-Shiv Sena alliance inched closer to retain power in the state of Maharashtra after leading 157 out of 288 seats. Meanwhile, Haryana is likely to be a hung assembly with no party attaining clear majority.
Maharashtra Results An 'Eye-Opener': Uddhav Thackeray
Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray described the assembly election results as an “eye-opener for many”, adding that the people of the state had kept democracy alive.
“We had agreed to contest fewer seats (than the BJP), but I cannot accommodate the BJP every time. I should allow my party to grow,” Uddhav said, indicating that he would drive a hard bargain.
Thackeray said that it was time to implement 50:50 formula that decided on earlier between Sena and BJP.
