Picture of Maharashtra politics has changed: Sharad Pawar after winning MLC polls

After the success of the Maha Vikas Aghadi' (MVA) in biennial polls to the Legislative Council, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar said that the political situation in Maharashtra has changed. He also stated that the people of Maharashtra have accepted the Uddhav Thackeray-led government.

As of Friday afternoon, candidates of the ruling Shiv Sena-NCP-Congress 'Maha Vikas Aghadi' (MVA) had won three out of five constituencies while in one place its candidate was leading.

Sharad Pawar said the result of the by-election to Dhule-Nandurbar seat, where the BJP's Amrish Patel won, was expected.

"He resigned (from the Congress) and contested. He had support from one big section which continued to support him in the election, so it cannot be a real victory," Pawar said while addressing media.

Maintaining that MVA showed its credibility by snatching seats in BJP bastions, he added: “The victory in Nagpur, from where BJP leaders like Nitin Gadkari and Devendra Fadnavis come, shows people’s confidence in the MVA government. We had never won these seats.”

But the results of the remaining constituencies where the MVA won was a reflection of the MVA government's performance, he said. "The picture has changed in the state," he added.

On being asked about state BJP chief Chandrakant Patil's statement that the outcome would have been different had the MVA constituents contested separately, Sharad Pawar said he was known for making comic statements. "We know how he won the (MLC) election last time," he said.

Senior NCP leader and Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar said the victory of MVA candidates reflected the unity among its constituents and people's faith in the government. The BJP's monopoly in Nagpur and Pune was broken, he said, adding that the results were a tight slap for some loquacious leaders.

Other NCP ministers like Jayant Patil and Anil Deshmukh also hailed the success of the MVA in the polls.

Minister and state NCP chief Jayant Patil said the poll outcome showed that besides farmers, workers and the middle class, highly-educated voters also supported the MVA government. Anil Deshmukh also said that the opposition party should now support the government for the state's development.