400-plus....: Shinde on NDA setback at Mahayuti rally, Fadnavis backs

Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Saturday attributed the setback suffered by the National Democratic Alliance in recent Lok Sabha elections in the state to many loyal voters going on holiday during voting, under the assumption that the saffron alliance was set to win more than 400 constituencies.

He acknowledged that the National Democratic Alliance was caught off guard by the Opposition, which succeeded in voter consolidation.

Speaking at a joint rally of Mahayuti partners in Mumbai, Bharatiya Janata Party leader and deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis supported Shinde's claims, stating that the NDA leaders did not pay enough attention to the lies spread by the Opposition during the campaign.

The rally was attended by leaders of Shiv Sena, BJP, Nationalist Congress Party headed by deputy CM Ajit Pawar, and other small constituents.

In Maharashtra, which sends 48 members to Lok Sabha, the BJP-led NDA could win only 17 seats, while the MVA comprising the Congress, NCP-Sharadchandra Pawar and Shiv Sena-Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray bagged 30 constituencies.

The Independent candidate who won the Sangli constituency is a Congress leader.

"We were caught off guard by the opposition during the Lok Sabha election," Shinde said.

"Some of our voters went on holiday during the polling, assuming that the NDA would easily win more than 400 seats in the general elections. This loss underscores the need for a more strategic approach in the future," he said.

Shinde claimed the Opposition voters diligently exercised their franchise, with almost 80 percent turnout.

"If 60 percent of our voters had turned up at the polling booths, we could have easily won 40 seats. We can't afford to be naive or callous after being hit hard in the Lok Sabha polls," he added.

In a critical remark against Congress, Shinde highlighted its history of scams, such as Bofors, fodder, and coal, while questioning if there had been any corruption allegations against Prime Minister Modi.

Fadnavis emphasised the significant impact of lies spread by the opposition during the campaign on the voters and the urgent need for an effective response.

"The MVA won two lakh votes more than the NDA candidates, but they won nearly 30 seats. They used to lie every day before the media, and we thought it would not affect our voters. But in reality, it did affect our voters, and we could not counter it effectively," he added.

Fadnavis also taunted some party leaders who made statements against NDA partners.

"There are some party leaders who get some extreme urge to make some statement. My suggestion to them is to first speak with their leaders, seek their permission, and then open their mouths," he said.