‘Time to Analyse Results’: Sharad Pawar Refuses to Blame EVMs After Maharashtra Poll Debacle

Mumbai: In his first response after a debacle in the Maharashtra Assembly Election 2024, Nationalist Congress Party (SP) president Sharad Pawar refused to blame the EVMs, unlike other opposition parties and said that it’s the time to analyse the assembly election results and shortcomings in the preparations. Responding to the performance of his party against his nephew Ajit Pawar ’s party, Sharad Pawar said that there was nothing wrong in admitting that his nephew’s party got more number of seats comparatively.

Answering the questions asked by media personnel, the veteran politician, Pawar refused to comment on alleged 'EVM tampering' till detailed results were out.

He said, "Ajit Pawar has got more seats and there is nothing wrong in admitting." He also added that fielding Yugendra Pawar from the Baramati assembly constituency was not a wrong decision.

NCP(SP) chief Sharad Pawar, on Sunday, addressed media personnel and said that his party will analyse the results once the full detailed results are available. When asked about the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA)'s dismal performance in the assembly polls, Pawar said that though the allies were confident after the success in the Lok Sabha elections, it cannot be denied that there is scope for more hard work.

"Yes, polarisation has happened given the statements of the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister. The communal twist was also there," the NCP(SP) chief admitted.

The election results, declared on Saturday, showed that the NCP faction led by Pawar’s nephew and Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar secured more seats than Sharad Pawar’s NCP. Despite this, Sharad Pawar said he would work to revitalize his party and keep it active in politics.

‘Ladki Bahin Scheme Worked For Ruling Alliance’

Speaking on the Maharashtra Assembly elections result, Sharad Pawar suggested that factors like the Ladki Bahin scheme, the large voter turnout among women, and religious polarization could have helped the Mahayuti alliance win.

When asked about his retirement from politics, Pawar gave a short response, saying he and his party members would make that decision together. Speaking to reporters in Karad city, Pawar mentioned that the NCP (Sharad Pawar’s faction) only won 10 seats in the 288-member assembly, while Ajit Pawar's NCP won 41 seats. 

Meanwhile, the Mahayuti alliance, which includes the BJP and Shiv Sena (Shinde faction), secured a landslide victory with a total of 132 and 57 seats, respectively. The opposition alliance, Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA), only won 46 seats.

Pawar also addressed concerns raised by Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut about the election results and the possibility of tampering with Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs). Pawar said he would only speak about EVMs if he had official data to support any claims.

Sharad Pawar admitted that the election result was a huge defeat for him, noting that despite the hard work put in by the MVA coalition during the campaign, they did not win the desired results. He added that the MVA had been more confident after its success in the Lok Sabha elections but still had more work to do.

When asked if he was upset by the result, Pawar said he was in Karad the day after the results were announced, and those who were demoralized would have stayed home.

He also defended his decision to field his grandnephew Yugendra Pawar against Ajit Pawar in the Baramati constituency, despite Yugendra losing by over 1 lakh votes. Sharad Pawar stated that Ajit Pawar and Yugendra Pawar could not be compared, and they knew the outcome would be tough.