Pune, Baramati Lok Sabha Results Highlights: BJP’s Murlidhar Mohol emerges victorious in Pune seat ; people have given their mandate, Sharad Pawar says amid Baramati win

Shiv Sena's Shrirang Barne has emerged victorious from Maval with a margin of 50139 votes while Shiv Sena(UBT)'s Sadashiv Lokhande trailed with 425498 votes. 

NCP-Sharadchandra Pawar's Nilesh Lanke continues to lead in Ahmednagar with a margin of 15842 votes while BJP's Dr Sujay Radhakrishna Vikhepatil continues to trail with 379869 votes. 

It is a well-known dirty trick in politics to prop up candidates bearing a resemblance to the name or election symbol of political opponents hoping that they will eat away part of the votes of the opponent. 

The trick does work to some extent but rarely makes a big impact these days with increased levels of education among voters. However, in the Dindori constituency covering parts of Nashik and Dhule districts, a mostly unknown Independent candidate with name as well as symbol resemblance caused a major dent in the votes of the Nationalist Congress Party (Sharad Pawar).

In Satara, BJP candidate and former Mayor Murlidhar Mohol continues to lead with a margin of 79,169 votes while Congress's Ravindra Dhangekar trails with 271721 votes after the twelth round of counting. 

In Satara, BJP candidate Udayanraje Bhosale continues to lead with a margin of 18,241 votes as Shashikant Shinde of NCP (SP) trails with 505,637 votes secured at the end of the twentieth round of counting. 

Left with only a handful of leaders and legislators, and his nephew usurping his party's name and symbol, veteran politician Sharad Pawar was in a tough spot last year. However, eleven months later, the 83-year-old has made a remarkable comeback. With his faction, NCP (SP) — Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar) — leading in eight out of the 10 Lok Sabha seats it contested in Maharashtra, Pawar has shown his determination to overcome challenges. According to initial counting trends, he has revitalized his party, achieving the highest strike rate.

Read how Sharad Pawar's NCP faction looks at highest strike rate in Maharashtra

Murlidhar Mohol, the BJP candidate from Pune has gone past 4,09,474 votes maintaining a lead of more than 80,000 getting a comfortable position against Congress' Ravindra Dhangekar, who has so far received 3,26,557 votes.

Supriya Sule, the seating MP from Baramati has gone past 2,08,000 votes maintaining a lead of 20,000 in close contest against Sunetra Pawar, the wife of Deputy CM Ajit Pawar. Pawar has so far received 1,89,283 votes.

In Beed, BJP's Pankaja Munde is leading against Bajrang Sonwane, whom her sister also defeated in 2019

Bajrang Manohar Sonawane from Nationalist Congress Party (Sharad Pawar) has so far received 1,94,000 votes while the BJP leader has received more than two lakh votes.

The contest in Beed which saw several instances of violence during the Maratha quota agitations is being seen as a contest between Sonawane, a Maratha leader and Munde, who is one of the top leaders from the Vanjari community (OBC).

In 2014, Munde Gopinath Pandurang, a veteran leader from BJP won the elections but soon passed away in a road accident after which his younger daughter, Pritam Munde took over. She then went on to stay in power in Beed after defeating Sonawane as undivided NCP’s candidate in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. 

This time, the older daughter, Pankaja who is also the national secretary of the BJP was fielded as the candidate. She was part of Maharashtra’s cabinet as Minister of Rural and Women, Child Development from 2014 to 2019. 

1.  Pune – NDA -BJP-Murlidhar Mohol-(59,000)

2.  Baramati -India -NCP (SP) Supriya Sule (19000)

3.  Maval -NDA -Shiv Sena -Srirang Barne -(69990)

4.  Shirur -INDIA-NCP(SP) – Amol Kolhe- (45124)

5.  Shirdi-INDIA -SHIV SENA (UBT) – Bhausaheb Wakchaure -(31474)

6.   Ahmednagar- INDIA -NCP – Nilesh Lanke -(9000)

7.    Satara-NDA-BJP-UDAYANRAJE BHOSALE -8900

8.    Kolhapur-INDIA- congress- SHAHU MAHARAJ -74,000

9.    Solapur-INDIA-congress -PRANITI SHINDE -17000

10.  Osmanabad (Dharashiv)-INDIA-OMRAJE NIMBALKAR -1,50,000

11.  Sangli-Independent -VISHAL PATIL -46,000

12.  Hatkanangle-INDIA-SENA UBT – Satyajit Patil -1500

13.  Latur-MVA-CONGRESS-SHIVAJI KALGE -28276

14.  Beed- INDIA-NCP (SP) – BAJRANG SONAWANE- 6500

15.  Madha- INDIA -NCP (SP) – DHAIRYASHEEL MOHITE PATIL -37600

Sr Pawar’s daughter and three-term MP, Supriya Sule leads in Baramati with 1,36,318 votes in close contest against Sunetra Pawar, the wife of Deputy CM Ajit Pawar. Pawar has so far received 1,24,283 votes.

• Incumbent BJP MP Raksha Khadse from Raver increases her lead to 1.05 lakh
• Shiv Sena UBT candidate from Osmanabad Om Rajenimbalkar leads by over 1.3 lakh votes.
• Eknath Shinde led Shiv Sena candidate Shrikant Shinde from Kalyan seat leads by almost 1.4 lakh votes.
• Naresh Mhaske, the Shiv Sena candidate from Thane, is leading with 1.1 lakh votes.
• Nandurbar Congress candidate Adv Gowaal Padavi leads by 1 lakh votes against incumbent BJP MP Heena Gavit.

In Maharashtra's Solapur constituency, the Indian National Congress appears to be making a comeback after two consecutive Lok Sabha defeats. Praniti Sushilkumar Shinde, daughter of veteran leader Sushilkumar Shinde, leads with over 18,000 votes against BJP's Ram Vithal Satpute, securing over 50% of counted EVM votes.

Sushilkumar Shinde, who won the seat in 2009, faced defeats in 2014 and 2019. Now, his daughter, a 43-year-old sitting MLA from Solapur, seems to be steering a successful campaign for Congress."

BJP's Sujay Vikhe Patil is leading at Ahmednagar by more than 12,500 votes against NCP-SP 's Nilesh Lanke as of 1:20 pm, according to ECI Website.

Naresh Mhaske of Shiv Sena leads in Thane with 254,175 votes, while Shiv Sena (UBT)'s Rajan Vichare trails behind with 165,810 votes, leaving Naresh with a lead of 88,365 votes.

Naresh Mhaske of Shiv Sena leads in Thane with 254,175 votes, while Shiv Sena (UBT)'s Rajan Vichare trails behind with 165,810 votes, leaving Naresh with a lead of 88,365 votes.

In BJP stronghold of Beed, represented by BJP leaders Gopinath Munde and her daughter Pritam Munde for several terms, NCP (Sharad Pawar) candidate Bajrang Sonawane had taken early lead which he maintained until sixth round. In next two rounds (7th and 8th) however, BJP’s Pankaja Munde got significant leads cutting the margin of her rival in 7th and surging ahead in the 8th round.

Bajrang Sonawane was leading by 5374 votes in the first round, 2319 in the second round, 2197 in the third round, 8956 in the fourth round, 8941 in the fifth round, 1387 in the sixth round and 203 votes at the end of the seventh round. At the end of the seventh round, Munde had accumulated 1 lakh 65 thousand 06 votes while Sonawane was at 1 lakh 65 thousand 209 votes. In the eighth round Munde took a lead of 9,366 votes surging ahead with a lead of 7000 votes.

Candidates of Prakash Ambedkar-led Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA) have failed to garner public support as compared to previous two Lok Sabha elections.

In Pune city, where BJP's Murlidhar Mohol is leading by a significant margin over Congress candidate, VBA candidate Vasant More has garnered only 11,800 so far. In 2019 polls, VBA candidate had accumulated 41,000 votes. 

VBA's Maval candidate Madhavi Joshi has garnered 8500 votes. Here Shiv Sena candidate Srirang Barne is leading over Shiv Sena (UBT) candidate Sanjog Waghere by a significant margin of 37,000 votes.

In Shirur, Dr Anwar Shaikh of VBA has got only 3100 votes so far. Dr Amol Kolhe of NCP (Sharad Pawar) is leading by 29,000 votes.

In Pune after 8 round, BJP candidate Murlidhar Mohol lead extends by over 40,000 votes over nearest rival Ravindra Dhangekar of Congress .

As of 12 pm, recent trends have defied exit poll predictions, showing a significant lead for the INDIA alliance over the NDA. Here are the current leads:

Vishal Patil, the Congress rebel leader who contested as an Independent in Western Maharashtra's crucial Sangli seat has taken a strong lead over BJP's Sanjay Kaka Patil and Shiv Sena UBT's Chandrahar Patil.

Patil contested the Congress-stronghold seat as Independent after the ticket went to Shiv Sena UBT in the INDIA bloc's seat sharing formula.

Grandson of Congress stalwart and former Maharashtra Chief Minister Vasantdada Patil, Vishal has received 1,70,880votes (47.82 per cent) seat after the counting of 3,57,350 votes. BJP's Sanjay Kaka Patil has received 1,43,52 votes (40.16 per cent) while Shiv Sena UBT's Chandrahar Patil got 23,131 (6.47 per cent) votes. 

One of the most closely watched contests in the Baramati Lok Sabha constituency initially favors the incumbent MP, Supriya Sule of NCP (SP), as she leads over her closest rival, Sunetra Pawar of NCP, by 25,859 votes.

Sule, facing the toughest election of her life, has secured 1.5 lakh votes compared to Sunetra Pawar's 1.24 lakh votes. Sule has steadily built significant leads, with her sister-in-law trailing by 25,800 votes at the end of the fifth round. 

However, the voting trend is changing with each round of counting.

Meanwhile, out of the six assembly constituencies in Baramati, Sule holds an advantage in five, with Khadakwasla behind Sunetra.  Supriya has consistently garnered marginal advantages from Baramati, Purandar, Indapur, and Daund assembly constituencies, as well as significant leads from the Bhor assembly constituency. While Sunetra has taken the lead in Khadakwasla, a constituency on the outskirts of Pune city, it has not been enough to overcome Sule's leads elsewhere.

Nanded's Congress candidate Vasant Chavan is leading by over 11,000 votes against BJP's sitting MP Pratap Patil Chikhlikar. Nanded witnessed former chief minister and Congress leader Ashok Chavan leaving the party just ahead of the polls. It was expected that BJP would gain an advantage in Nanded.

In the neighboring district of Hingoli, Nagesh Patil Ashtikar of Shiv Sena (UBT) is leading against Ravi Jadhav, the candidate of Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde). Hingoli had witnessed sitting MP Hemant Patil of Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde) being denied a ticket.

In Pune, BJP's Murlidhar Mohol has secured 99,000 votes, while Congress candidate Ravindra Dhangekar has garnered 78,000 votes.

Despite the BJP's lead, Congress leader Mohan Joshi remains optimistic and confident of winning the prestigious seat.

"The winning margin may be small, but we are 100 percent certain of a win," said Joshi, who has been at the FCI godown in Koregaon Park since 7 am, closely monitoring each counting room. "I will leave only after celebrating with gulal after our victory," he added.

Along with Firecrackers slogans “Supriya Tai tum aage badho, ham tumhare saath hai” and “Maharashtra cha Bulnd awaaj Sharad Pawar, Sharad Pawar” slogans were chanted by supporters outside Sharad Pawar’s office in Baramati. The celebration is a result of Supriya Sule's consolidating lead against Sunetra Pawar with Sule securing 97000 againt Sunetra's 83000 votes as of now.  

The office is packed with party workers and well-wishers glued to the TV eyeing every update of the results.  

“Tai’s work is our biggest win”, said Dr BD Gaikwad, Maharashtra state Karya adhyakshw, Sahitya kala sanskrutik vibhaag, NCP (SP). He said that the work Sharad Pawar has done as a leader over the years, taking the commong man along with him at every step, is something people will never forget. There is no doubt the lead with continue and Tai will win.  

Meanwhile, Ajit Pawar’s office in Baramati is desserted, with only a watchman at the door who informs everyone is in Pune where the votes are being counted.

After six rounds in Shirur, an interesting tidbit has emerged: NOTA has garnered 2,419 votes, outscoring most of the independent candidates.

After four rounds of counting in the Shirdi constituency, where there is a tough tussle, Bhausaheb Rajaram Wakchaure from Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) is leading by 9,818 votes, while Lokhande Sadashiv Kisan from Shiv Sena and Utkarsha Rupwate from VBA are trailing.

BJP's Sujay Vikhe Patil leads in Ahmednagar in the first round against Nilesh Lanke of NCP (Sharad Pawar faction). However, second-round trends indicate a close contest. Ahmednagar remains a nail-biter, keeping the sitting MP Sujay Vikhe Patil on edge as Lanke gains votes. In the third round, Lanke has polled 23,087 votes while Sujay has garnered 29,016 votes.

Supriya Sule leads by 19000 votes in the fourth round against Sunetra Pawar.

Sule, who belongs to NCP (SP), is eyeing her fourth consecutive victory while Sunetra Pawar, wife of Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, is contesting her first election.  

Supriya Sule leads by 19000 votes in the fourth round against Sunetra Pawar.

In Pune, BJP candidate Murlidhar Mohol leads over Congress candidate Ravindra Dhangekar by 18,919 votes after round 3

Congress rebel Vishal Patil leads by 20,000 votes in Sangli seat. BJP's Sanjaykaka Patil and Chandrahar Patil of Shiv Sena (UBT) trailing. 

In Madha, NCP’s Dhairyasheel Mohite Patil is leading by 2093 votes over sitting BJP MP Ranjeetsingh Naik Nimbalkar. Mohite Patil has till now received 16,880 votes while Naik Nimbalkar has got 14,787 votes.

Balwant Baswant Wankhede of Congress takes lead over BJP's Navneet Rana in Amravati by more than 3000 votes.

According to the Election Commission data, the NDA is currently ahead in 24 seats, with the INDIA bloc leading in 22 seats. Additionally, AIMIM has secured its first seat with the victory of the party's candidate Imtiaz Jaleel Syed in Aurangabad. Meanwhile, Union Minister Piyush Goyal is leading in Mumbai North, while Supriya Sule of NCP(SP) has extended her lead over her rival Sunetra Pawar, her sister-in-law.

Shiv Sena's Shrirang Barne leads by 17,000 votes over Sanjog Waghere of UBT in the second round of counting in Maval.

After the first round of counting in Kolhapur, Chhatrapati Shahu Shahaji is leading with 29,604 votes, while Sanjay Mandlik polled 23,380 votes.

In Satara, BJP candidate Udayanraje Bhosale is trailing by 6000 votes as Shashikant Shinde of NCP (SP) takes the lead with 59,000 votes secured at the end of the first round of counting.

After the second round of counting in Pune, BJP candidate Murlidhar Mohol leads over Congress candidate Ravindra Dhangekar by 12,629 votes.

Supriya Sule of NCP (SP) leads by 11,532 votes after the end of the second round in Baramati.

In Beed, BJP candidate Pankaja Munde is currently trailing, with Bajrang Sonawane of NCP (SP) leading in the third round of counting.

In Pune, Murlidhar Mohol of BJP is leading by 4765 votes initially Congress' Ravindra Dhangekar was leading in 4 out of 6 assembly constituencies - Kasba, Shivajinagar, Parvati, and Cantonment.

In Baramati Supriya Sule is leading in the first round by over 6000 votes. It was Sunetra Pawar who was leading in the postal ballot. 

Sule bags 33285 while Sunetra Pawar gets 26552 votes after first round.

Sule, who belongs to NCP (SP), is eyeing her fourth consecutive victory while Sunetra Pawar, wife of Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, is contesting her first election.

In Shirur, candidate Amol Kolhe, who initially led by 6000 votes in the postal ballot, extended his lead by an additional 9000 votes in the first round.

Kolhe, affiliated with NCP (SP), is competing against Shivajirao Adhalrao-Patil. Kolhe currently holds the position of MP.

In Kolhapur, Congress candidate Shahu Maharaj Chhatrapati is leading by 7000 votes in the first round. He is up against Sanjay Mandalik of the Shiv Sena.

Ravindra Dhangekar, the Congress candidate, takes the lead in the initial round of counting for the Pune Lok Sabha constituency

With the counting process underway, stringent security measures are in place at the counting centers for the Pune and Baramati Lok Sabha seats located at the Food Corporation of India godown. Police authorities are ensuring all necessary precautions are taken at these counting centers for the Pune and Baramati Lok Sabha constituencies.

As the vote counting continues for the Pune seat and we anticipate the outcome, let's revisit the previous election cycle:

In the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, the BJP secured victory in the Pune constituency. Girish Bapat of the BJP emerged as the Member of Parliament with 632,835 votes. The runner-up was INC candidate Mohan Joshi, who garnered 308,207 votes.

In Baramati, Sunetra Pawar, the wife of Deputy CM Ajit Pawar has gained an advantage in the counting of postal ballots. According to trends so far in the state, Sr Pawar’s daughter and three-term MP Supriya Sule is trailing .

Parties Competing on 48 Seats in Maharashtra:

- BJP against INC - 15 seats

- SHS against SS(UBT) - 13 seats

- BJP against SS(UBT) - 5 seats

- BJP against NCP(SP) - 8 seats

- NCP(AP) against SS(UBT) - 2 seats

- NCP(AP) against NCP(SP) - 2 seats

- RSPS against SS(UBT) - 1 seat

- SHS against INC - 2 seats

Counting of postal ballots begins for Western Maharashtra’s Madha constituency. The counting is being held at Ramwadi Government Godown in Solapur. 

The sitting BJP MP Ranjeetsingh Naik Nimbalkar is pitted against NCP’s Dhairyasheel Mohite Patil, a BJP turncoat.

Mohite Patil had joined NCP (SP) in a move steered by Sharad Pawar after being denied ticket by the BJP. He belongs to the politically strong Mohite Patil family from Akluj. Naik Nimbalkar belongs to the royal family of Phaltan. 

The Madha Lok Sabha constituency comprises six assembly seats -- Karmala, Madha, Sangola and Malshiras from Solapur district and Phaltan and Man from Satara district. A large portion of these areas is highly drought prone.

After serving as a corporator in the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) and as Pune mayor from 2017 to 2022, BJP candidate Murlidhar Mohol is now contesting for the Pune Lok Sabha seat. Mohol is committed to addressing civic issues and accelerating the implementation of infrastructure projects to enhance the quality of life in Pune. He shares his plans for the city in an interview with Ajay Jadhav of Indian Express

"This election will decide which government is elected to the Centre, and thereupon the future of the country. My appeal to everyone is to once again vote to make Narendra Modi the Prime Minister. Under his leadership, Pune has got the Metro service, electric buses, flyovers at Chandni Chowk, Riverfront Development Project, project of pollution abatement of Mula Mutha and a medical college project. So people should again vote to make Modi the PM and fulfill the dream of a developed nation."

Until the 2019 Lok Sabha Election, postal ballots were counted 30 minutes prior to the EVM counting. It was mandatory for all postal ballots to be counted before completing the EVM counting process.

The Election Commission's Handbook for Counting Agents in February 2019 emphasized that the results of all EVM counting rounds should not be announced before finalizing the postal ballot counting.

However, following the 2019 elections, the Election Commission adjusted this guideline due to the significant increase in postal ballots, attributed to the introduction of the Electronically Transmitted Postal Ballot System (ETPBS) and the mandatory counting of VVPAT slips from five randomly selected polling stations.

On May 18, 2019, the Election Commission withdrew its earlier guideline and instructed all Chief Electoral Officers that EVM counting could proceed regardless of the stage of postal ballot counting.

The counting of votes for the Lok Sabha elections starts.

During this Lok Sabha election, the Congress presented a united front, a departure from its fractured state in the past. Local party leaders set aside their differences and actively participated in the campaign for party candidate Dhangekar.

The Maharashtra Congress unit collaborated with leaders from various districts to organize Dhangekar's election campaign. Similarly, the local units of alliance partners NCP (SP) and Shiv Sena (UBT) were also actively involved in campaigning for Dhangekar.

In Maval, Shiv Sena candidate Shrirang Barne appears set to win for the third time, according to exit poll results. If successful, Barne will be the second MP from Pune to secure a hat-trick, following Supriya Sule. Initially, the campaigning in Maval was so subdued that many believed it would be a one-sided contest in Barne’s favor. However, post-poll murmurs have intensified, suggesting that some NCP workers and leaders did not fully support Barne, a sentiment he himself acknowledged. 

Capitalising on this discontent, the Sanjog Waghere camp is anticipating a major upset. Waghere, contesting the Lok Sabha elections for the first time, remains optimistic. "Several factors have worked against Barne. It will become clear on Tuesday," said Waghere, expressing confidence in his potential victory.

In the last five consecutive Lok Sabha polls, the BJP has always considered Jalna an easy win, largely due to the stronghold of senior leader and Union Minister Raosaheb Danve. However, this time, the term ‘cakewalk’ has been replaced with ‘will manage.’

Five-term BJP leader Danve is now facing a direct challenge from former Congress MLA Kalyan Kale. The issue of Maratha reservation has become a significant factor in Jalna, a district known for its steel industry. The village of Antarwali Saarathi in the district has emerged as the epicenter of the Maratha agitation led by activist Manoj Jarange Patil. The strong undercurrents of Maratha reservation sentiment against the ruling BJP have created hurdles for Danve in his home ground.

Recognizing the challenge, Danve has launched an intensive door-to-door campaign, aiming to connect with both Marathas and alliance partners from the Shiv Sena (Shinde faction) to maintain his electoral base.

Know why Jalna constituency presents a tough challenge for BJP

If there's one state that might bring a glimmer of hope to the Opposition after the June 1 exit polls, it's Maharashtra. Nearly all exit polls, except one, predict that the three-party Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) coalition—comprising the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena, the Sharad Pawar-led NCP, and the Congress—will gain a substantial lead over the BJP-led NDA, which includes the breakaway factions of the Shiv Sena and NCP led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and his deputy, Ajit Pawar, respectively.

LOK SABHA ELECTION RESULTS 2024

In the 2019 elections, the BJP and the then-unified Shiv Sena secured 42 out of the 48 Lok Sabha seats in Maharashtra. The BJP won 23 of the 25 seats it contested, while the Shiv Sena captured 18 of the 23 seats it contested. Congress managed to win just one seat out of the 24 it contested, and Sharad Pawar's NCP won four out of the 20 it contested. This made Maharashtra a stronghold for the BJP.

However, the 2024 scenario appears vastly different. According to exit polls, despite the BJP and NDA's previously firm grip on the state, the Opposition seems to have not only halted the BJP’s momentum but also pushed it into a corner. The exit polls suggest the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena could win between nine to 14 seats out of the 21 it contested. Sharad Pawar’s NCP is expected to increase its tally by two to three seats from its previous four, out of the 10 it contested. Congress is also projected to improve, potentially raising its tally to four to six seats from the 17 constituencies it contested. The NDA is estimated to win between 23 to 32 seats, while the Opposition is expected to secure 16 to 25 seats.