Shinde Faction Boycotts
Uddhav Faction Absent
Lokmat News Network
Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar: BJP's Avinash Galande and Jitendra Jaiswal were elected unopposed as President and Vice President of the Zilla Parishad (ZP) on Wednesday, amid highly dramatic developments at the District Collector's office.
Political activity had intensified significantly from Tuesday night through Wednesday morning. Disgruntled over being denied the presidency, the Shinde Sena faction boycotted the election entirely, while all nine Uddhav faction members adopted a neutral stance and abstained. Consequently, the entire political equation shifted in favour of the BJP, rendering the actual majority count unnecessary.
The BJP-led group commanded 32 members — comprising 23 elected BJP members, four from NCP (Ajit Pawar faction), one each from Prahar, Congress and NCP (Sharad Pawar faction), and two Independents. Against them, 22 members from the Shinde faction boycotted the proceedings. With the required quorum of 21 met, Presiding Officer Sambhaji Adkune formally declared the election unanimous without a show of hands, as the premises reverberated with slogans of "BJP Zindabad!"
All political developments concluded within four and a half hours, from 10 AM to 2:30 PM. With this victory, following its win in the Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar Municipal Corporation, the BJP has now successfully hoisted its flag over the ZP as well.
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Minister Save's Masterstroke
OBC Welfare Minister Atul Save pulled off a shrewd overnight manoeuvre that completely turned the game around. When Shinde Sena's local leaders claimed a majority of 37 members before their seniors, Save challenged them to produce all 37 in person. By Wednesday morning, Shinde Sena found itself in a bind — their assembled majority had turned into a deficit. Following a Uddhav Sena whip, three members in contact with Shinde Sena went unreachable, while the remaining Uddhav members turned their backs. All four NCP (Ajit Pawar faction) members chose to stay with the BJP, and one NCP (Sharad Pawar faction) member also parted ways with Shinde Sena, enabling Save to consolidate his winning platform.