Uddhav-Raj Alliance Suffers Embarrassing Defeat in 1st Election
Sena (UBT) senior union leader Suhas Samant said he was surprised by the results. “Money prevailed in this election. We have 12,000 employees supporting our party, and still we lost. This indicates the possibility of cash-for-votes.”
Mumbai: In a major setback for the Thackeray brothers, the joint panel of Shiv Sena (UBT) and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) failed to secure a single seat, losing all 21 in the election to the BEST Employees’ Cooperative Credit Society Ltd in Mumbai.
A usually low-key affair, the elections for the Best Employees Co-op Credit Society Ltd (also called BEST Patpedhi) had generated tremendous interest as the Thackeray cousins were contesting together for the first time. It was considered a rehearsal for the BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation elections.
In the 21-member BEST Patpedhi, the panel led by trade union leader Shashank Rao emerged victorious with a clear majority by winning 14 seats, while a BJP legislator Prasad Lad-backed panel finished second by securing seven seats.
Contesting under the joint ‘Utkarsh’ panel for 19 of the 21 seats, the Sena (UBT)-MNS alliance failed to win a single post, effectively ending the Shiv Sena’s nine-year-old hold on the Patpedhi.
The Thackeray group was optimistic of scoring a victory as most of the members of Shiv Sena (UBT)’s labour wing, Kamgar Sena, are members of the Patpedhi. The credit society has 15,123 Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) employees as its members. Of these, 15,656 voted on Monday.
With the BEST being dominated by Marathi-speaking staffers, the Thackeray cousins’ defeat is being seen as a major blow, especially ahead of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) polls and in the backdrop of recently held ‘Marathi pride’ rally and issues raised by the two brothers over Marathi.
Targeting the Thackeray brothers, BJP’s Prasad Lad said that Thackeray brand did not work in the elections. “Thackeray’ brand 21 faced 000, 00/21, meaning the brand’s boss could not win a single seat...” he said in his post on X,
Sena (UBT) senior union leader Suhas Samant said he was surprised by the results. “Money prevailed in this election. We have 12,000 employees supporting our party, and still we lost. This indicates the possibility of cash-for-votes,” he alleged.
