Ahmednagar Civic polls: BJP wins mayor, Dy mayor posts with NCP support

Polling was held for 68 seats in the civic body. The Sena emerged as the largest party with 24 seats. The BJP won 14 seats, NCP 18, Congress five, BSP four, Independent two and SP one. The NCP, BJP and Sena had fielded candidates for the mayor post. The BJP with the support of NCP corporators and smaller parties polled 37 seats to get its mayor Babasaheb Wakale elected. BJP’s Malan Dhone also got elected as deputy mayor with NCP support. “We had taken the initiative to support the Sena in the polls. However, the Sena did not respond to our move. So, the BJP elicited the support of NCP corporators,” said BJP leader and state Water Resources Minister Girish Mahajan.

The BJP-NCP alliance in the local body polls stoked speculations about a possible tie-up for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. NCP spokesperson Nawab Malik, however, said, “There is no question of any alliance with the BJP for the 2019 Lok Sabha or Assembly polls. Local body polls are different. The NCP will have an alliance with the Congress.”