Rajya Sabha result will not affect MVA government: NCP chief Sharad Pawar

PUNE: NCP chief Sharad Pawar on Saturday said the Rajya Sabha poll result would not affect the stability of the MVA government as it had the required majority. Pawar said that the result was not shocking for him. "NCP, Shiv Sena and Congress got votes according to the quota and there was good co-ordination among the MVA partners. Praful Patel [NCP candidate] received an extra vote. It was not from MVA but from the other side. Whatever miracle happened has to be accepted because Devendra Fadnavis was successful in winning over people (Independents) in various ways," Pawar said.
In a close contest, BJP's Dhananjay Mahadik won the sixth Rajya Sabha seat. Shiv Sena's Sanjay Pawar could not make it.
Pawar said, "The sixth seat fought by Sena was a risk because the gap of votes was huge. But Uddhav Thackeray took the risk. In politics, one has to take risks. Sena showed courage, contested the seat and gained good [number of] votes. BJP had more Independent MLAs on its side for this seat, but the number of votes was not sufficient for both BJP and MVA. BJP was able to get the support of the Independents." Pawar said the objection raised by BJP over votes of three MLAs' was a part of "foul play", which resulted in delay in the election process.