Lok Sabha election highlights: BJP-Shiv Sena set to repeat 2014 feat in Maharashtra

NEW DELHI: The BJP-Shiv Sena alliance has taken a significant lead in Maharashtra, as per trends. The saffron alliance is ahead in 44 seats while the Congress-NCP combine is leading in 4 constituencies, trends for which are available.


Maharashtra sends 48 members to the Lok Sabha, the second highest after Uttar Pradesh's 80.



The BJP, with 23 seats and 27.56 per cent of votes, was the largest party in the last elections, while the Shiv Sena with a vote share of 20.82 per cent and 18 seats was its junior partner.

The Congress, which had won just 2 seats in 2014 with a vote share of 18.29 per cent, and the Nationalist Congress Party, which managed 4 seats with 16.12 per cent of votes, have contested the 2019 Lok Sabha elections in alliance.

While the BJP contested 25 Lok Sabha seats and the Shiv Sena 23 seats in Maharashtra, the Congress and the NCP fought on 25 and 19 seats respectively, leaving two seats each for their allies.

Four Union ministers- Nitin Gadkari, Hansraj Ahir, Subhash Bhamre and Anant Gite- and two Congress veterans- Ashok Chavan and Sushilkumar Shinde - are among the 867 candidates in the fray in the state, which went to polls in four phases in April.

Gadkari is seeking re-election from Nagpur. He is pitted against Nana Patole of the Congress. In 2014, Gadkari had defeated Congress's Vilas Muttemwar by a margin of over two lakh votes.

Patole was a BJP candidate in 2014, who had defeated NCP heavyweight Praful Patel from Bhandara-Gondiya seat. However, Patole quit the BJP to return to his parent party - the Congress.

Minister of state for home Hansraj Ahir is seeking re-election for the fourth term from Chandrapur. This time, he has a stiff challenge from Shiv Sena MLA Suresh Dhanorkar, who switched over to the Congress to fight the election.

Minister of state for defence Subhash Bhamre is contesting from Dhule against Congress's Kunal Patil.

In Raigad, minister of state for heavy industries Anant Gite is seeking re-election against NCP's Sunil Tatkare. Gite is the only Shiv Sena minister in the Union cabinet.

Former Union home minister Sushilkumar Shinde, who was also the chief minister of the state, is pitted against Lingayat seer Jaisiddeshwar Swami of the BJP and Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi's Prakash Ambedkar, the grandson of Dr B R Ambedkar.

Ashok Chavan was one of the only two Congress candidates, who had won the 2014 Lok Sabha polls. This time, he faces challenge from Shiv Sena MLA Pratap Chikhlikar, who switched over to the BJP at the last minute to take on the former CM from Nanded seat.

In Baramati, the BJP left no stone unturned to wrest the seat from NCP MP Supriya Sule, who had weathered the 'Modi wave' of 2014 to retain the family pocket borough. Sule's main challenger this time is BJP candidate Kanchan Kul, wife of Rashtriya Samaj Paksh (RSP) MLA Rahul Kul.

In Maval, Parth Pawar, son of NCP leader Ajit Pawar is making his political debut. Parth is pitted against sitting Shiv Sena MP Srirang Barne.

In Shirur, noted actor Amol Kolhe, who shot into fame with his portrayals of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and Sambhaji in two different television serials, is pitted against sitting Shiv Sena MP Shivaji Adhalrao Patil.

Ahmednagar is important for the BJP as well as the NCP. NCP chief Sharad Pawar had refused to part with the seat to Congress since Sujay Vikhe Patil, son of senior Congress leader Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil, wanted to contest. Sujay then joined the BJP, which fielded him from the seat. Local MLA Sangram Jagtap was NCP's choice for the contest.

Out of the six Lok Sabha seats in Mumbai, all eyes will be on whether Congress heavyweights Milind Deora and Priya Dutt, who could not win the 2014 polls, can reclaim their bastions of Mumbai South and Mumbai North Central parliamentary seats respectively.

Another interesting factor would be to watch the performance of actor Urmila Matondkar, who is predicted to give a good fight to BJP's Gopal Shetty in Mumbai North. Sanjay Nirupam had lost the seat in 2014 by a margin of 4.40 lakh votes.