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Mahayuti's little ones bite the dust

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The allocation of seats for smaller allies in the Mahayuti had been one of the flashpoints in the Shiv Sena-BJP alliance, which parted ways soon after. BJP had charged that Sena was not willing to concede more seats for the four smaller parties.

However, the results of the Maharashtra assembly elections have shown that Dalit leader Ramdas Athavale's RPI (A), Lok Sabha MP and farmer leader Raju Shetti's Swabhimaani Paksha, dhangar community leader Mahadeo Jankar's Rashtriya Samaj Paksha (RSP), and Maratha leader Vinayak Mete who heads Shiv Sangram, have been severely trounced at the hustings.

These parties had preferred to stay back with the BJP. The only saving grace has been the victory of RSP's Rahul Kul, son of former NCP MLAs Subhashrao and Ranjana Kul from Daund in Pune, against Ramesh Thorat (NCP). Rahul had contested the 2009 elections as an NCP candidate. The RSP had put up five candidates and secured just 0.5% votes (2,56,662).
Adding insult to injury, Sena's Ulhas Patil managed to defeat Shetti's candidate Savkar Madnaik and Rajendra Patil Yadravkar of the NCP from Shirol, which was Shetti's assembly constituency. Ulhas Patil is a former aide of Shetti.

Shetti, who had put up 13 candidates from Kolhapur, Satara and Solapur, had managed to get prime minister Narendra Modi to campaign for his candidate Prashant Paricharak from Pandharpur. However, Prashant, nephew of former NCP MLA Sudhakarpant Paricharak, was defeated by Bharat Bhalke of the Congress. Bhalke had won the 2009 elections as an SP nominee. SP secured 3,48,906, or 0.7%, votes.

Mete lost to former NCP minister and OBC leader Jaidutt Kshirsagar from Beed in Marathwada. Athavale, who had been allocated eight constituencies in the seat-sharing exercise, could put up official candidates on only three and secured 1,00,580 (0.2%) votes. However, Athavale's nominees put up a good fight at Pimpri and Chembur, from where underworld don Chhota Rajan's brother Deepak Nikalje contested.

"We made mistakes. Our probable candidates must nurture the constituency for five years. We must take all communities along and put up a strong candidate," said Athavale, who is a Rajya Sabha MP.

dhaval.kulkarni@dnaindia.net

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