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The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar) on Wednesday shared the two Pune Division seats in the Maharashtra Legislative Council elections, with BJP candidate Kaustubh Gawade winning the Teachers constituency and NCP (SP) candidate Harshada Deshmukh-Jadhav retaining the Graduates constituency for the opposition alliance.
Gawade secured 23,117 votes to defeat Independent candidate Sachin Sanap, who was backed by the Shiv Sena led by Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and received 16,347 votes. Congress candidate and sitting MLC Jayant Asgaonkar finished fourth with 8,965 votes, while Independent candidate Dattatray Sawant finished third. The Teachers constituency witnessed a contest involving the BJP, Congress and candidates backed by different political formations. Gawades victory came against Asgaonkar, who had represented the constituency, while Sanaps candidature added another dimension to the contest amid differences within the ruling Mahayuti alliance over candidate selection. In the Graduates constituency, NCP (SP) candidate Harshada Deshmukh-Jadhav defeated BJP candidate Smita Jadhav. Deshmukh secured 1,13,840 votes against Jadhavs 1,03,912, winning by a margin of 9,928 votes. Harshada Deshmukh-Jadhav is the daughter of former bureaucrat Prabhakar Deshmukh, who has been associated with NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar. She had also contested the previous Assembly elections as an NCP (SP) candidate. Her BJP rival, Smita Jadhav, is associated with the Dr DY Patil educational group, where she serves as Pro-Chancellor and Secretary. Reacting to her victory, Deshmukh said her campaign had achieved its target and thanked those who supported her. We have achieved the quota of 1.13 lakh votes. This election has shown what happens when voting is conducted through ballot papers. I thank everyone who backed and supported me, she said. Senior NCP (SP) leader Jayant Patil said the outcome reflected graduates concerns over issues affecting them, including unemployment, inflation and difficulties faced by candidates preparing for competitive examinations. Graduates have expressed their anger over unemployment, inflation and the difficulties faced by students preparing for competitive examinations, Patil said. Commenting on the significance of ballot-based elections, he said, Whenever elections are held through ballot papers, the opposition wins. Meanwhile, Gawade said he would focus on working for teachers across the constituency and responding to his critics through his performance. I will work with everyone, shoulder to shoulder. I had not criticised anyone, even when questions were raised about my age. We worked together as the Mahayuti alliance, and I will respond to my critics through my work, he said. Gawade added that he would strive to honour the trust placed in him by teachers and avoid repeating mistakes made by previous legislators. I would not say that I defeated anyone. This constituency comprises discerning teachers, and I will work for all teachers, he said. Responding to allegations of money being distributed during the election, Gawade questioned the timing of the accusations. The elections were held across Pune, Satara, Sangli, Kolhapur and Solapur districts. The Teachers constituency had 53,185 voters exercising their franchise, while 2,43,611 voters cast their ballots in the Graduates constituency. The results delivered a split verdict in the two constituencies, with the BJP winning the Teachers seat and the NCP (SP) securing the Graduates seat. The outcome also saw the defeat of the sitting Congress MLC in the Teachers constituency, while the opposition partys alliance partner retained the Graduates seat. (ANI)
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