BJP loses RSS bastion Nagpur, four other Zilla Parishads

Nagpur (Maharashtra), Jan 8 The Congress-Nationalist Congress Party combine handed a humiliating defeat to the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party in the elections to the prestigious Nagpur Zilla Parishad -- the home turf of Leader of Opposition Devendra Fadnavis and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh -- officials said here on Wednesday.

Besides Nagpur, the BJP was vanquished in Palghar, Nandurbar and Washim, was neck-to-neck with Congress in Dhule, while the Prakash Ambedkar-led Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA) bagged surprise control of Akola Zilla Parishad (ZP).

Of the total 332 seats for which voting was held in six ZPs, the BJP bagged 103, Congress 73, NCP 46, Shiv Sena 49, VBA 42, while Independents and others secured 14 seats.

In the 58-seat Nagpur ZP for which polls were held, the Congress bagged 30, the NCP 10, while the BJP managed only 15 seats.

The ruling Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) ally Shiv Sena chose to contest alone in Nagpur ZP and had to be content with just one seat, while two seats were won by Independents and others in this prestigious local body.

In Palghar ZP of 57 seats, the Sena got 18, NCP 14 and BJP 12, while five seats went to CPI(M), three to Independents. The Congress bagged only one seat.

However, the BJP had reason to smile in Dhule where out of the 56 seats, it secured 39, followed by Congress at seven, Sena four and NCP three, besides three Independents.

In Nandurbar, there was a neck-to-neck fight for the 56 seats in which BJP and Congress got 23 apiece, Sena seven and the NCP three.

The BJP suffered a jolt in Washim ZP where of the total 52 seats, the party got only seven, NCP bagged 12, Congress nine, Sena six, VBA 15 while Independents bagged three seats.