Rutuja Latke, the candidate of the Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray), on Sunday won the bypoll to Andheri (East) Assembly seat in Mumbai, an official said.
The November 3 by-election, necessitated due to the death of sitting Shiv Sena MLA and Rutuja Latke’s Ramesh Latke in May this year, was a mere formality after the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) withdrew its candidate from the race.
The BJP had pitted Murji Patel for the election against Rujuta Latke of Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena. Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena faction had did not fielded its candidate and decided to back Murji Patel.
The withdrawal came after Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackery urged the BJP not to contest the East Andheri bypoll in reverence to late Shiv Sena MLA Ramesh Latke.
“The BJP has decided not to contest the Andheri East bypoll. Murji Patel, who had filed the nomination from the BJP, will now withdraw it. We could have otherwise won the election,” Maharashtra party chief Chandrashekhar Bawankule said in Nagpur.
A spokesperson of Uddhav Thackeray faction, however, said that the BJP decided to pull back from the contest as they were scared of losing. NCP chief Sharad Pawar had also sought the unopposed election of Rutuja Latke in the bypoll.
This was the first electoral contest in Maharashtra after the Uddhav Thackeray-led Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government collapsed in June following a revolt by a section of Shiv Sena MLAs led by Eknath Shinde.
Shinde subsequently became chief minister in an alliance with the BJP.
(With PTI inputs)
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