Abu Azmi Set To Retain Mankhurd Shivaji Nagar Assembly Bastion With Decisive Victory Over Nawab Malik
In the Mankhurd Shivaji Nagar Assembly constituency, Samajwadi Party's Abu Azmi is on a winning path against NCP's Nawab Malik.
Mankhurd Shivaji Nagar Assembly constituency result: One of the most anticipated battles in the Maharashtra Assembly elections was the one between NCP's Nawab Malik and Samajwadi Party's Maharashtra president Abu Azmi. Ajit Pawar insisted on fielding Nawab Malik on a Mahayuti ticket despite objections by the BJP. It seems Ajit Pawar's gamble failed to pay off as Abu Azmi took a massive lead by afternoon. According to the Election Commission, he had a lead of over 5,000 votes.
Abu Azmi, the incumbent MLA from the Mankhurd Shivaji Nagar Assembly constituency, had been winning the seat since it first went to polls in 2009. This was a high-stakes battle for both the NCP and the SP.
Abu Azmi, president of the SP in Maharashtra, is the father-in-law of actor Ayesha Takia. His loss would be a major blow to the SP in the state.
Nawab Malik's candidature in the assembly polls was mired in controversies since the beginning as the BJP and the NCP failed to come to an agreement. The seat was allotted to NCP, but the BJP did not agree to Nawab Malik contesting the polls from the Mahayuti, owing to his alleged links to underworld don Dawood Ibrahim. However, Ajit Pawar refused to budge and moved Nawab Malik from his Anushakti Nagar seat to the Mankhurd Shivaji Nagar seat.
The NCP allotted the Anushakti Nagar seat ticket to Nawab Malik's daughter Sana Sheikh. She faced off NCP (Sharad Pawar) leader and actor Swara Bhasker's husband Fahad Ahmad.
The Mankhurd Shivaji Nagar assembly segment recorded a voter turnout of 52.14%. The final turnout figure in Maharashtra was pegged at 66.05%, which is the highest in 30 years.
The Maharashtra Assembly elections for all 288 seats were held in a single phase on November 20. Both Mahayuti and the Mahavikas Aghadi launched fierce campaigns against one another.
This was one of the most crucial elections in the history of Maharashtra's assembly as it follows two years of political turmoil. Two of the biggest parties in the state, the Shiv Sena and the NCP, split after surprising rebellions by the leaders closest to the chiefs of the respective parties. Both Uddhav Thackeray and Sharad Pawar were shell-shocked after their aides Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar orchestrated rebellions to secure the CM and Deputy CM's seats, respectively. While the Shiv Sena split in 2022, the NCP split in 2023.
In this election, the BJP-led Mahayuti alliance sought to maintain its hold on power, while the opposition coalition, Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA), aimed to build on its recent successes in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections in Maharashtra.
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