Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, May 2: In a setback to the ruling alliance of the Eknath Shinde faction of Shiv Sena and the BJP, the rival Maha Vikas Aghadi of the Nationalist Congress Party, Congress and the Uddhav Thackeray faction of Shiv Sena made considerable gains in the elections to the Agricultural Produces Marketing Committees in Maharashtra.
The MVA coalition has claimed it emerged victorious in the APMC polls held across the state. The APMC polls are seen as an important indicator of the political mood in rural areas, and the MVA’s victory is likely to boost its morale ahead of the Assembly elections in 2024.
Even as the final results are still pending, the MVA had won 76 out of 131 bodies while the ruling alliance had bagged only 31 committees. The election was held on April 28 for around 225 APMCs. One body comprises around 18 seats.
In Baramati APMC, NCP won all 18 seats, Ajit Pawar, Leader of the Opposition in the State Assembly, said. Ajit Pawar said, “It’s a tradition in Baramati where we get 80%-85% of votes in every election. Those newly elected will work towards the betterment of the market… Under the guidance of Sharad Pawar ji, we are doing a great job in Baramati. After the market elections, we now have the responsibility to do more work.”
In Parli too, NCP won all 18 seats and in Nanded, the Congress under former Chief Minister Ashok Chavan won 13 of 18 seats. In Latur, the Congress under former Minister Amit Deshmukh secured a clean sweep. “Thanks to the work of the previous Congress-led panel, voters this time decided to give us full power,” said Latur Rural MLA Dhiraj Deshmukh.
NCP won the Phaltan APMC in Satara district while CM Shinde’s Shiv Sena group won in Paithan. The BJP dominated Yavatmal-Ghatji Bazar. In Nashik, NCP won nine out of 15. BJP won in Pune, Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Ahmednagar and Karjat where NCP chief Sharad Pawar’s grandnephew, Rohit Pawar, is an MLA.
In Vidarbha, the BJP suffered setbacks under its State president Chandrashekhar Bawankule as it failed to retain the APMC in Kamptee Maudha. The party also lost important APMCs in Buldhana, Yavatmal and Akola.
In Sangli, BJP MLA and Labour Minister Suresh Khade saw the APMC directorship go to an MVA-led panel. Similarly, sitting Ministers of the ruling Sena group Dadasaheb Bhuse and Sanjay Rathod lost in Malegaon in Nashik district and Digras in Yavatmal district respectively.
Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut slammed the ruling Shinde-Fadnavis government over the poll results. He said the APMC result was the first blow by the farmers to the ruling alliance. Further, the Sena (UBT) leader Uddhav Thackeray and former minister Aaditya Thackeray said the MVA’s win showed there was no place for traitors.
The APMC polls are seen as an important indicator of the political mood in rural areas. These committees are responsible for the regulation of agricultural markets in the state, and they play a crucial role in setting the prices of crops. The APMCs are also a key source of revenue for the state government, as they levy a market fee on the sale of agricultural produce.
The MVA has claimed its victory in the APMC polls is a reflection of the people’s faith in the government’s policies and programs. Maharashtra Congress chief Nana Patole said the results of the APMCs were showing people’s anger against the ruling alliance, and it will manifest in other elections as well.
Maharashtra NCP president Jayant Patil said the MVA won all 18 seats in his home turf Sangli. In Akola APMC of Vidarbha region, the NCP-backed panel bagged 11 seats, BJP managed five, and two went to the panel backed by the Uddhav Thackeray faction of Shiv Sena.
The BJP, however, claims that it won the highest number of seats in the election. BJP spokesperson Keshav Upadhye said the saffron party has won 201 seats, followed by Shiv Sena, which bagged 42 seats. The political party symbols are not used in APMC elections. Instead, the parties back “panels” to fight the elections.
In the key Nashik APMC, the NCP won nine of 15 director seats and the BJP got five. But NCP leader Devidas Pingale alleged they lost the five seats due to “official interference.”
The Pune election which the BJP-backed panel won took on extra importance as it was held after 20 years. In Pune, the BJP-backed ‘all-party panel’, primarily including NCP rebels, swept 13 of the 18 director posts, which could be concerning for the Sharad Pawar-founded party.
