Nagpur: Two midnights on, there was no tryst with destiny in the Nagpur graduates’ constituency elections even as ruling Mahayuti and opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) bagged two seats each in the Maharashtra Legislative Council poll results declared on Wednesday.
For Mahayuti there was much cheer in Amravati with sitting MLC Kiran Sarnaik retaining Amravati division teachers’ constituency by 8,027 votes, giving Sena (Shinde) its first victory in the seat under the party banner. Karale secured 14,708 first-preference votes and reached 24,249 after the second round, emerging as a major factor in the contest. More than 15,000 ballots were declared invalid, compared with 11,540 in 2020. With 38 candidates in the fray, preference transfers proved crucial. BJP was seeking to reclaim a constituency it had dominated for 58 years since Jan Sangh days, while Congress aimed to retain the seat Wanjarri won in 2020. In Amravati, Sarnaik polled 16,663 votes against Congress candidate Aditi Pohare’s 8,636, crossing the winning quota of 16,134 in a field of 26 candidates.
Even as the prestige battle for Nagpur graduates’ constituency continued amid the prolonged count, Kohale reportedly conceded defeat and blamed the election process, including transfer of votes following the elimination of other candidates. BJP candidate Kaustubh Gawade defeated Shiv Sena rebel Sachin Sanap in the Pune teachers’ constituency, giving the ruling alliance a second win. The constituency covers five districts of Amravati division and has traditionally been represented by independents and candidates backed by teachers’ organisations.