MPCC chief says party will not be bogged down by the defeat in Bandra by-pollCongress leader Narayan Rane addressing the media out side his residence in Mumbai on Wednesday.
Mumbai : Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC) president Ashok Chavan on Wednesday said that the party will not be bogged down by the defeat in Bandra east by-poll and it will try to expose the Union and State government.
Chavan also praised Narayan Rane, who was the Congress candidate, over taking up the challenge to contest the by-election. “Rane gave a good fight and compared to Assembly polls in October last year, Congress saw a marked improvement in the party’s vote share in the constituency,” he said.
“It was proved that the party like All India Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul Muslimeen (AIMIM) in the fray as key factor that benefited Shiv Sena and BJP. These parties split votes and misguide the minorities and help Sena-BJP,” he added.
Chavan said Congress will not be affected by the loss; instead it would aggressively take on the BJP-Sena government in the State and at the Centre.
Shiv Sena Chief Uddhav Thackeray said, “This victory belongs to the people who voted for us and party workers who kept loyalty to us. Muslims have given an answer to AIMIM leader by voting for us in large numbers. MIM has been shown its place,” he said.
Referring to Rane’s defeat, NCP leader Sunil Tatkare said AIMIM’s vote share had come down drastically whereas Congress climbed from fourth position in October last year to runner-up. “Shiv Sena’s votes were bound to increase because BJP was not in the fray. Some BJP votes must have gone to the Sena,” he added.
Though Rane accepted his defeat, as the result showed he was trailing on Wednesday morning, Shiv Sena workers burst fire crackers in front of the Congress leader’s residence at Juhu Tara Road. Juhu police detained five Shiv Sena workers for bursting crackers and violating the code of conduct prescribed by the Election Commission. There were rumours about the workers having brought hens along with them, but the Assistant Commissioner of Police of Santacruz division, D Jadhav denied the same.
