In a huge shot in the arm for the Shiv Sena, the ruling ally in the MVA government in Maharashtra won the Dadra & Nagar Haveli bypolls on Tuesday, the party’s maiden electoral victory outside the state.
Kalaben Delkar, the widow of former MP Mohan Delkar who died under mysterious circumstances earlier this year, secured the victory by a huge margin of over 50,000 votes from the union territory. She defeated BJP candidate Mahesh Gavit. Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut is believed to have played a key role in sculpting the party’s first-ever win in an election outside Maharashtra.
Speaking to CNN-News18, Raut said, “This is very significant for Shiv Sena. We have national aspirations. We want to expand our footprint. In Maharashtra, we are a dominant party. But we want to establish ourselves outside the state. Dadra & Nagar Haveli is the beginning of it.”
Voting for the seat, which is part of the Union Territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, took place on October 30. Mohan Delkar, who had won the 2019 election by defeating the then sitting BJP MP Natubhai Patel by a thin margin of 9,001 votes, allegedly hung himself at a Mumbai hotel on February 22, 2021. He had been a member of both the Congress and the BJP at different times of his political career.
After initial trends started coming in, Raut tweeted: “First step outside Maharashtra, giant leap towards Delhi via Dadra Nagar Haveli! #ChaloDelhi.”
Raut’s efforts behind the victory were even acknowledged by Aaditya Thackeray, who tweeted: “A special mention for the resolve of Smt Kalaben Delkar ji to contest the elections and win so as to give voice to her constituency. And of course to @rautsanjay61 ji’s efforts with Anil Desai ji, Abhinav Delkar and all those who campaigned for the @ShivSena in the elections.”
After Mohan Delkar’s mysterious death at a hotel in Mumbai, his widow and son had visited Maharashtra politicians during an assembly session. Within some time, after the bypolls were announced, there were initial speculations on whether Kalaben Delkar will fight on a BJP ticket. Since then, Raut and a few other leaders were in touch with the family. A few months ago, Sanjay Raut played a key role in getting her into the Shiv Sena fold.
Abhinav Delkar, Kalaben’s son, did a lot of groundwork ahead of the polls in which the family also got sympathy votes due to the untimely demise of Mohan Delkar. The Sena now eyes the upcoming Goa polls in which the party will fight on 22 seats, Raut said.
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