Maharashtra results 2024 (Vidarbha): Despite farm unrest, revived Congress, BJP sweeps over 40 seats
In the 36 seats where the two national parties were in a straight fight, the BJP managed to win 27, despite the region witnessing farmer unrest.
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State BJP chief Chandrashekhar Bawankule said, “The Lok Sabha poll outcome cannot be equated to Assembly polls. We took measures to address the flaws. That put us in a commanding position.” (PTI Photo)The BJP swept over 40 out of the 62 seats in the cotton belt of Vidarbha which was one of most closely watched regions in the Maharashtra Assembly elections as the party was engaged in a direct fight with Congress in 36 seats in the region.
This comes as boost to the BJP as it was decimated to two seats in Vidarbha in the Lok Sabha elections held this year — its ally Shiv Sena also won only one seat in the region, while NCP(SP) and an independent candidate secured one seat each.
The Congress, which was hoping to revive its electoral fortunes in the region after winning five of the ten Lok Sabha seats , faced a huge setback as it managed to win only nine Assembly seats from Vidarbha.
During the Lok Sabha election, the Congress campaign had focused on the Constitution alleging that the BJP plans to amend it if the party gets more than 400 seats.
The Congress’s improved tally in the general elections was attributed to the support it got from the Dalit, Muslim and Kunbhi communities.
However, this time, the party’s attempt to reach out to these communities did not fetch them much gains.
In the 36 seats where the two national parties were in a straight fight, the BJP managed to win 27, despite the region witnessing farmer unrest.
State BJP chief Chandrashekhar Bawankule said, “The Lok Sabha poll outcome cannot be equated to Assembly polls. We took measures to address the flaws. That put us in a commanding position.”
State Congress chief Nana Patole, who had won the Sakoli seat in Vidarbha, said, “The results don’t match the ground realities where public anger was evident due to agrarian crisis, unemployment and inflation.”
Meanwhile, farmer leader from Vidarbha Vijay Jawandia said that a victory for the ruling alliance does not imply absence of farm distress.
“Farmers are getting Rs 3,800 to 4500 per quintal for soyabean, which is below the MSP of Rs 4,892 per quintal. The cotton growers also are getting just Rs 6000 to Rs 6500 per quintal as against the MSP of Rs 7,521 per quintal,” he said.
Vidarbha also assumes political significance as the RSS headquarters is located in Nagpur, which is also the home of Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, state BJP chief Chandrashekhar Bawankule and Union Minister Nitin Gadkari.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi had held two public rallies in the region, at Wardha and Washim on September 20 and October 5 respectively, even before the Assembly polls were announced.
While Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi held a public meeting in Nagpur, Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi concluded the party’s poll campaign by holding a roadshow in Mahal where RSS headquarters is located.
In the 2014 Assembly polls, the BJP had swept Vidarbha by bagging 44 seats out of 62 seats. The results saw BJP emerging as the largest party with 122 seats. In the 2019 polls, it won only 29 seats from the region, with its overall tally declining to 105 seats.
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