Marathi votebank backed saffron

Mumbai: The analysis, based on data shared by election officials, shows that the Marathi vote bank strongly remained with the Shiv Sena and the Bharatiya Janata Party in Mumbai, despite valiant efforts by the Raj Thackeray-led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) to breach it during the Lok Sabha polls. The results have showed that the MNS could not transfer its vote share to the Congress-NCP.

In Mumbai North East constituency, despite the BJP fielding a Gujarati-speaking candidate Manoj Kotak, the Marathi-speaking voters in Bhandup and Vikhroli Assembly segments voted overwhelmingly for Kotak.

Mr Kotak got 97,269 and 69,618 votes respectively in these two assembly seats while NCP’s Sanjay Dina Patil received only 50,346 and 41,502 votes. Raj Thackeray had held a rally in Bhandup during the Lok Sabha polls.

In Sewri Assembly seat, where Raj Thackeray held a public rally, Shiv Sena’s Arvind Sawant got 91,497 votes in comparison to 41,645 votes for the Congress’ Milind Deora. Similarly, in Marathi dominated Worli, the Sena candidate received 78,653 votes while the Congress managed to get only 42,499 votes.  

In Mahim Assembly seat, Sena’s Rahul Shewale managed to get 91,635 votes against 38,145 votes for the Congress’ Eknath Gaikwad. In Mumbai North, the BJP’s Gopal Shetty secured a lead against film star Urmila Matondkar of the Congress in all six Assembly seats.

Former Mumbai Congress president Sanjay Nirupam too failed to surpass his Sena rival Gajanan Kirtikar in any of the Assembly segments in the parliamentary constituency. The Congress-NCP combine managed to lead in only five of the 36 Assembly segments in the city.

Their candidates managed to take a lead in Dharavi (SC) from Mumbai South Central (8991 votes), Mankhurd from Mumbai North East (41670 votes), Mumbadevi (34869) and Byculla (28675) from Mumbai South and Bandra East (1276) from Mumbai North Central. But Congress’ sitting MLAs, Naseem Khan from Chandivli and Aslam Sheikh from Malad West, could not ensure lead to party candidates from Mumbai North Central and Mumbai North respectively, the data shows.

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