MVA parties blame each other for Maharashtra legislative council election defeat

Mumbai: Blame game has begun in the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) comprising Congress, Shiv Sena (UBT) and NCP (SP), after the large-scale cross-voting by their MLAs in the legislative council elections. While, the Shiv Sena (UBT) blamed the cross-voting by “seven Congress MLAs” for the defeat of alliance candidate Jayant Patil, NCP (SP) is unhappy with Uddhav Thackeray’s decision to field his close associate Milind Narvekar as the third candidate of the alliance and jeopardising Mr. Patil’s chances. Meanwhile, Mr. Patil claimed that at least once MLA from the Sharad Pawar faction also cross-voted.

Jayant Patil, chief of Peasants and Workers Party, received only 12 votes in the election held on Friday. All three candidates of MVA together received only 59 votes.

Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut said that MVA candidate Jayant Patil’s defeat was not a setback for the opposition alliance. “Though legislators from the Congress cross-voted in the council polls, no one from the Shiv Sena (UBT) or NCP (SP) defied,” he said.

Apart from the PWP, Samajwadi Party is also part of the MVA. However, Mr. Raut indicated that “secular” parties sold their votes to the ruling alliance for huge money. He alleged that the “rate” of the MLAs of smaller parties and independents was soaring like a stock market and some of them were even given two acres of land.

“There are MLAs who think they are secular, who believe in the socialist ideology. There are many like that (who did not vote for the MVA candidate). The rate for MLAs ranged from Rs 20 crore to Rs 25 crore. The MVA will not play such a game,” the Shiv Sena (UBT) leader said.

However, contradicting Mr. Raut’s claim about no defection in the Sharad Pawar faction of NCP, Mr. Patil said he was sure of getting 14 votes including 12 from the NCP (SP) and a single vote from PWP MLA Shyamsundar Shinde. “I received only 12 votes. Our MLA voted for me.Which means at least one MLA from Sharad Pawar’s party cross-voted,” he said.

A senior leader from the NCP (SP) pointed out that the MVA did not have enough votes to field three candidates. “Sharad Pawar had made a promise to Jayant Patil at the time of the Lok Sabha election itself. Congress had numbers to get its candidate elected easily. But Shiv Sena (UBT) did not have the number. Mr. Thackeray’s candidate got votes from the Congress because of which Mr. Patil came in the danger zone. Had he not fielded a candidate, all candidates would have been elected unopposed. That would not have exposed the discord in the alliance,” the NCP (SP) leader said.

Meanwhile, Maharashtra Congress president Nana Patole said that action will be taken against the MLAs who defied the party whip in the legislative council election. He said the party knows who cross-voted. “We have the information about the MLAs who cross-voted. The party will take action against them for indulging in anti-party activities. They will be shown the doors,” the Congress leader said.