Setback to BJP in Maharashtra as MVA bags four graduate constituencies in MLC elections
Congress wins Nagpur graduates' constituency
Mumbai, Dec 4: The NCP, which is part of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government in Maharashtra, on Friday won Aurangabad and Pune graduates' constituencies of the state Legislative Council.
The ruling Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) in Maharashtra has won 4 out of 6 Graduates' and Teachers' constituencies of the state Legislative Council.
NCP's Satish Chavan won the Aurangabad division graduates' constituency, defeating BJP nominee Shirish Boralkar.
Chavan polled 1,16,638 votes, while Boralkar bagged 58,743 votes, the state electoral office said.
Meanwhile, Congress candidate Abhijit Wanjari won the Nagpur division graduates' constituency election by defeating BJP's Sandip Joshi by a margin of 18,910 votes. This is perceived to be a big setback to the BJP, as it had held the seat for the last 58 years.
In Pune division graduates' constituency, NCP's Arun Lad defeated BJP candidate Sangram Deshmukh by a margin of 48,824 votes.
Lad polled 1,22,145 votes, while Deshmukh bagged 73,321 votes.
BJP's defeat in Pune graduates' constituency is considered to be a big blow to party's state unit chief Chandrakant Patil, who along with former chief minister Devendra Fadnavis had campaigned extensively to retain the seat.
Patil represented the Pune graduates' constituency before he became a member of the Legislative Assembly from Kothrud constituency in the 2019 state elections.
The biennial elections to six legislative council seats - three graduates' and two teachers' as well as one local body's seat were held on December 1.
The MVA allies were leading in two other constituencies, out of the total five seats.
In Nagpur Division graduates' seat, Congress's Abhijit Vanjari was leading over his nearest rival Sandeep Joshi (BJP).
In Pune division teachers' constituency, Jayant Asgaonkar of the Congress was leading over Independent Dattatraya Sawant.
In Amravati Division teachers' constituency, Kiran Sarnaik (Independent) was leading over Shiv Sena's Shrikant Deshpande.
Talking to reporters in Mumbai, NCP chief Sharad Pawar said the result was a reflection of the MVA government's performance in the last one year.
The Dhule Nandurbar local body's seat was won by BJP's Amrish Patel. The by-election was held as Patel, who was earlier with the Congress, quit the party to join the BJP.
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Fire breaks out in residential building in east Delhi, nine killed
New Delhi (PTI): At least nine people were killed after a fire broke out in a residential building in east Delhi's Vivek Vihar early Sunday, officials said.
The incident was reported around 3.48 am at a four-storey building in Vivek Vihar Phase-I, following which police, fire and disaster management teams rushed to the spot.
According to the police, the blaze engulfed flats on the second, third and fourth floors of the building, prompting a large-scale rescue operation.
The cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained.
"Around 10 to 15 people were rescued from the premises during the firefighting operation. Two of them, who sustained minor injuries, were shifted to the Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital," a senior police officer said.
A total of 12 fire tenders were pressed into service to douse the flames, while teams from the Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA), traffic police and local police assisted in the rescue and evacuation efforts.
Police said the fire was brought under control after several hours.
The identities of the deceased are yet to be ascertained, and efforts are underway to determine the cause of the fire, police said.
Further investigation and proceedings are underway.
