Pune: Karjat-Jamkhed MLA Rohit Pawar of Nationalist Congress Party-Sharadchandra Pawar (NCP-SP) on Monday expressed strong confidence in a historic victory for Deputy Chief Minister Sunetra Pawar in the Baramati Assembly by-election, claiming she could secure up to 97% of the total votes.
Speaking to the media, Rohit Pawar said the result reflects the expectations of Baramati voters and the goodwill built by late leader Ajit Pawar. He said people have voted for “Sunetra Kaki” because of Ajit Pawar’s work and connection with the public.
He added that any votes against her may have been cast “by mistake" and maintained that only around 3% of votes would go to other candidates.
His statement came as counting trends showed Sunetra Pawar extending her dominance. By the end of the 15th round, she had taken a lead of 1,32,916 votes. In this round, out of 11,224 votes counted, she secured 11,061 votes, while the remaining candidates shared a very small portion.
The focus has now shifted to whether she will break a record margin. The “magic figure” to surpass is estimated at 1,65,266 votes. With nine rounds still remaining, attention is on whether she can cross this mark and register one of the biggest wins in the country.
Victory Confirmed Mathematically…
The by-election has been largely one-sided. After Congress candidate Akash More withdrew, Sunetra Pawar faced 22 candidates, most of them independents. Only a few represented smaller registered parties, including R. Y. Ghutukade of the New Rashtriya Samaj Party and Satish Kadam of the Hindustan Janta Party.
Among the independents are known names like Karuna Munde and Abhijit Bichukale. However, none have been able to mount a serious challenge.
With her lead already crossing 1.3 lakh votes and counting still underway, Sunetra Pawar’s victory is all but confirmed. The only question now is the final margin and whether it will set a new electoral record.
