Senior Congress leader and former Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan on Sunday expressed his shock at the party's crushing defeat in the state assembly elections, calling it the "worst-ever" loss in the state's electoral history.
In an interview with PTI, Chavan attributed the Mahayuti alliance's victory to their successful Ladki Bahin Yojana, which offered financial assistance to women, gaining strong support in rural areas. He also pointed to the impact of polarization, which he believes weakened the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) in urban regions of the state.
"I cannot definitively say whether it was a wave or tampering," Chavan remarked, acknowledging the surprise defeat of several prominent MVA leaders, including himself. Chavan, who contested the Karad South seat, was defeated by BJP's Atul Bhosale with a margin of 39,355 votes. He had originally anticipated winning by a margin of 5,000 to 6,000 votes, but the MVA candidates in Satara lost by nearly 40,000 votes.
Chavan drew comparisons to the Congress' poor performance in the 1977 Lok Sabha elections, where the party secured just 20 out of 48 seats in Maharashtra. "This is a shocking defeat. It is the worst-ever in the assembly polls," he stated, referring to the recent results announced on Saturday.
Chavan also mentioned that he had spoken with Congress leader Ramesh Chennithala about the outcome, and that Chennithala would be discussing the results with the Congress leadership in Delhi. Chavan plans to remain in Karad for two days to meet with locals and discuss the situation further.