Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yeddyurappa is probably the only BJP leader who is not unhappy about the results of Haryana and Maharashtra assembly elections which were announced on Thursday, October 24th, where the BJP led NDA suffered a major setback after its stupendous performance in the recent Lok Sabha elections, says BJP Internal sources.
With counting of votes, a clear picture of the assembly elections in Maharashtra and Haryana has emerged. The BJP-Shiv Sena alliance has emerged victorious in the state of Maharashtra, while Haryana showed a hung assembly.
4. Setback for BJP and Shiv Sena in Maharashtra
In Maharashtra, most of the exit polls had predicted CM Devendra Fadnavis to retain the power in Maharashtra. Here the BJP- Shiv Sena coalition proved to be right as exit polls predicted but not with huge majority. BJP on its own has won 105 seats, while the Shiv Sena has bagged 56 seats out of the total 288 seats. The NDA alliance won a total 161 out of 288 seats, where the magic number for the Maharashtra assembly is 145. Independent candidates have managed to win 13 seats. The NCP on its own has managed to win 54, while the Congress has won 44 seats this time.
Earlier, most pollsters predicted a bigger victory for the BJP-Shiv Sena alliance. But NDA alliance managed to win only 161 out of 288 seats. It is a major setback for BJP who expected to win more than 150 seats on its own. BJP should think of why their alliance won fewer seats than they managed separately in the last assembly elections, after which they stitched up a post-poll alliance.
Six ministers from the Maharashtra government have lost elections, which is a serious matter for ruling BJP. Again, the loss of Pankaja Munde from Parli shocked the BJP high command.
Interestingly for the Shiv Sena, Aditya Thackeray’s victory from Worli is an encouraging sign. It is the first time someone from the Thackeray family has contested an election, ever since the party was formed in 1966. Shiv Sena which was on backfoot has emerged confident and gained lost ground. It will not make it an easy partnership for BJP.
