Bypolls: 58% turnout in Pawar bastion Baramati

E-PaperSubscribeSubscribeEnjoy unlimited accessSubscribe Now! Get features like Bypoll to Maharashtra’s Baramati assembly constituency, where deputy chief minister and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) president Sunetra Pawar is in the fray, recorded a provisional voter turnout of 58.17%, while the Rahuri seat recorded55.87% and Gujarat’s Umreth 59.04%, as per data shared by the Election Commission of India (ECI) till 11 pm on Thursday. Baramati: Maharashtra deputy chief minister and NCP leader Sunetra Pawar shows her inked finger after casting a vote in the Baramati assembly bypoll, in Pune district (PTI)Bypolls to Baramati were necessitated after the death of then deputy chief minister and NCP chief Ajit Pawar, who was the sitting MLA from the constituency, in a plane crash on January 28. The election has largely been viewed as a one-sided contest, with Sunetra Pawar emerging as the dominant contender in the absence of a strong opposition challenge. Of the 23 candidates in the fray, 22 are independents. The Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi did not field a candidate. The Congress had earlier fielded Akash More but the party later decided to withdraw his name. Before casting her vote, Sunetra Pawar paid tributes to Ajit Pawar. “...This election is taking place in Ajit dada’s absence and people are paying tribute to him by exercising their democratic right,” she said. Baramati has remained a stronghold of the Pawar family for over six decades. Sharad Pawar won the constituency six times since 1967 before Ajit Pawar took over the seat in 1991 and went on to win it eight consecutive times. The Rahuri assembly seat, meanwhile, became vacant after BJP MLA Shivaji Kardile’s death in October last year. His son Akshay Kardile was in the fray as a BJP candidate from the seat, and was pitted against NCP (SP) candidate Govind Mokate and Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi’s Santosh Chalke. The bypoll at Gujarat’s Umreth assembly seat was necessitated following the death of BJP MLA Govind Parmar last month, witnessed a direct contest between BJP candidate Harshad Govindbhai Parmar and Congress nominee Bhrugurajsinh Chauhan. Three Independents and a candidate from a lesser-known party were also in the fray. (With inputs from Maulik Pathak in Gujarat)