FP The publishers permit sharing of the e-paper's pdf on WhatsApp and other social media platforms FREE PRESS Vol. XLI No. 167 | INDORE | SUNDAY | NOVEMBER 24, 2024 | Pages 16 ` 4 | Regd. No. Indore MP/ICD 216/2024-2026 | RNI No. 38281/83 www.freepressjournal.in Sports John new venture in sports P.16 fp Briefs NEW DELHI PM: Negative politics lost Prime Minister Narendra Modi hailed the people of Maharashtra today for what he called their "historic verdict", saying the mandate was a firm rejection of the negative politics of the Opposition. The election in Maharashtra proved the maxim of "Ek hai toh safe hai (there is safety in unity)" which has become a mantra to the whole country, he added to massive cheers in an address to party workers at the BJP headquarters. LUCKNOW BJP+ win 7 of 9 in UP Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won big in the Uttar Pradesh assembly bypolls held in nine seats as the party secured victory in six constituencies, while its ally Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) won one seat, taking National Democratic Alliance (NDA) tally to seven. KOLKATA TMC sweeps Bengal In a clear sign that issues like the rape-and-murder case at the R G Kar Hospital had no impact, the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) on Saturday swept the Assembly bypolls in West Bengal, winning all six seats with an increased margin while wresting the Madarihat seat from the BJP. Conceding defeat, BJP state unit president Sukanta Majumder claimed that these results were expected in bypolls. A shock defeat for the Congress in the Samaguri constituency – a seat it had held since 2000 – helped the BJP and its allies achieve a clean sweep in the Assam bypolls for five assembly seats. The BJP contested three seats and its candidates won each one – Diplu Ranjan Sarmah in Samaguri, Diganta Ghatowal in Behali, and Nihar Ranjan Das in Dholai. AHMEDABAD Congress loses in Guj The Congress lost its bastion of Vav Assembly seat in the bypoll, with the result going right down to the wire. The party’s Gulabsinh Rajput lost to the BJP’s Swarupji Thakor by just over 2,400 votes, the lowest-ever margin for the seat. JAIPUR Raj: BJP wins 5 Cong one The BJP has won five Rajasthan bypolls seats while the Congress has won one, BAP has retained Chorasi while RLP has lost in its bastion in Khimsar. The BJP has won in Ramgarh, Deoli Uniara, Khinvsar, Jhunjhunu and Salumber, while Congress has won Dausa and the BAP has retained its Chorasi seat. iii QUALITY @ VALUE EDITIONS: INDORE WORLD UJJAIN PUNE BHOPAL NASHIK MUMBAI E-paper readers’ corner life, love and lie P.8 NATO, Kyiv to hold crisis talks Cinema Mohini Dey denies rumours P.14 CONGRESS SHELL SHOCKED: Decimated in Maharashtra, Grand Old Party proves to be a weak link in Jharkhand; Priyanka’s victory in Wayanad Lok Sabha seat is a small consolation NDA WINS MAHA, INDIA KEEPS J’KHAND Ketan Narottam Tanna MUMBAI Maharashtra’s elections results have left political pundits scratching their heads and opposition leaders clutching their pearls. For the BJP-led Mahayuti it was a symphony of votes, perfectly orchestrated. For the Congress and the Shiv Sena factions, it was a dirge played on a broken sitar. As WhatsApp groups buzz with theories and party offices fumble for answers, one question looms large: how did the BJP turn Maharashtra into its latest trophy state? Was it cash, caste, or campaigns? Perhaps a bit of all three, garnished with RSS seasoning and a dollop of opposition ineptitude. Uddhav Thackeray, visibly disoriented after his coalition’s dismal performance, spoke aloud, "What magic wand did they wave?" Sanjay Raut, his perpetual sidekick, added, “Kuch toh gadbad hai,” reinforcing the notion that if politics doesn’t work out, he has a future in melo- MAHAYUTI MVA 236 49 MAHARASHTRA ASSEMBLY RESULT 2024 Total Seats OTH 3 288/288 drama. The Mahayuti didn’t just win Maharashtra; it bulldozed its way to a near-majority in the 288-seat assembly, leaving its rivals gasping for relevance. The star of the show? Welfare schemes gift wrapped in populist jargon. The Muk- hyamantri Majhi Ladki Bahin Yojana promised Rs 1,500 per month to women from economically weaker sections — thus reaching out to 2.5 crore voters who suddenly found themselves on Mahayuti’s speed dial. Critics dismissed it as bribe masquerading as a policy initiative, but voters seemed to think, "Better Rs 1,500 today than empty promises tomorrow." Even as opposition leaders scoffed, the Mahayuti doubled down, pledging to bump the payout to Rs 2,100 after the elections. Call it "cash-for-votes" or "revdi culture," but the Mahayuti knew its audience: homemakers and daily wagers who preferred cash in hand to lofty debates on inflation and unemployment. But cash wasn’t the only ace up the Mahayuti’s sleeve. The real coup was uniting Hindu voters across caste lines. Maharashtra, with its infamous caste fault lines, had long been a chessboard of fragmented loyalties. This time, the BJP deployed its trusted guru, the RSS, to pull off a masterstroke. Slogans like "Ek hai toh safe hai" (United, we are safe) echoed through villages and towns, while grassroots campaigns knitted together a cohesive Hindu identity. 4Continued on | P6 has won in but if we DemocracyCommissionJharkhand..and EVMs get a huge victory in Maharashtra... then Election is 'biased' are 'hacked' Devendra Fadnavis Min Rawat loses in Vijaypur, Bhargava wins Budhni seat Rawat Malhotra Our Staff Reporter The BJP and the Congress have won one seat each in the assembly by-election, the outcome of which was announced on Saturday. Forest Minister Ramniwas Rawat lost to Congress’s Mukesh Malhotra by a margin of 7,364 votes. After his shock defeat, Rawat has offered to resign as minister. In Budhni, BJP candidate Ramakant Bhargava defeated Congress’s Rajkumar Patel by a margin of 13, 901 votes. Rawat switched over to the BJP from the Congress before the Lok Sabha election. After Rawat resigned from the assembly seat, he was made a minister. Despite this, Malhotra defeated him. The BJP pulled out all the stops to ensure Rawat’s victory, but party’s strategy failed to match the Congress’s tribal card. Now, Rawat has to resign from the ministry. The defeat of the BJP in Vijaypur and tough fight in Budhni shocked the ruling party. After being wiped out in the Our Staff Reporter BHOPAL Lok Sabha and assembly elections, the Congress’s win in Vijaypur and giving a tough fight to the ruling dispensation in Budhni have given a new lease of life to the party. 4Continued on | P6 4Continued on | P6 Patel Bhargava BJP, Cong share honours in by-polls BHOPAL JEE aspirant from MP commits suicide in Kota A student from district Anuupur taking coaching for Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) in Kota, allegedly committed suicide by jumping from the sixth floor of his hostel here, police said on Saturday. Deputy Superintendent of Police Yogesh Sharma said that the 18-year-old student Vivek Kumar, a resident of Annupur in Madhya Pradesh, had been preparing for JEE at a coaching institute here since April. He had allegedly jumped from the sixth floor around midnight. No suicide note was recovered from his room, and the reason for the suicide is yet to be ascertained, police said. It is informed that he lived in a hostel room in Rajiv Gandhi Nagar in Jawahar Nagar area, the police said. Vivek was taken to hospital where he died during treatment, Sharma said. The safety net installed on the balcony of the boy's room had holes and was found nicked, suggesting it might have been tampered with for the jump, police said. A forensic team was sent to the spot to collect evidence and examine the circumstances surrounding the reason for death, he added. GUWAHATI BJP’s Assam clean sweep ESTD-1983 ‘Will review defeat’ After the party’s loss in Vijaypur, Yadav said the seat belonged to the Congress. The party may have lost the election, but the BJP’s vote share has increased, Yadav said, adding that reasons for the defeat would be reviewed. ‘Cong strengthened’ MPCC president Jitu Patwari said the party’s victory in Vijaypur and the reduction in BJP’s margin of win in Budhni, were the triumph of the Constitution and democracy. The voters strengthened the opposition. The party’s victory in Vijaypur is the people’s reply to the BJP’s hooliganism, he said. offgrid Govt to start cow-related course Our Staff Reporter BHOPAL Chief Minister Mohan Yadav said the degree course related to ‘Gau Mata’ will be started through Atal Bihari Vajpayee Hindi University. Milk production will be encouraged by providing cow\calf to every home. “We will try to ensure every house has one cow,” he said. He said this after laying the foundation stone of high-tech Gau Shala in Barkhedi Dob village, on Saturday. The high-tech Gau Shala is coming up on 25acre land and can house 10,000 cows. It will be constructed with an estimated cost of Rs 15 crores. CM underlined that since the formation of new government in the state, arrangements have been made to take care of 50,000 cows. To stress the importance of cows and milk, state government is celebrating current year as a Cow Conservation Year. Also, the government is all set to give bonuses on milk production. 4Continued on | P6 NOT WAVE, BUT TSUNAMI: UDDHAV Shiv Sena (UBT) President and former CM Uddhav Thackeray said that it seems like a tsunami swept aside the Maha Vikas Aghadi, but felt that there is some ‘gadbad’ (amiss). In his first reaction after the last of the results were coming out, Thackeray admitted that it was indeed a bolt for the Congress-Nationalist Congress Party (SP)-Shiv Sena (UBT) alliance, yet expressed his gratitude for all the people who voted for the MVA candidates. “It was not just a wave, but a tsunami… This was beyond all expectations… Some say it’s the victory of the EVMs… Maybe. But if it's also acceptable to the masses then we have nothing to add,” said Thackeray, addressing media persons. He recalled how once BJP had said once that only one party would survive in the country, “We are now moving in that direction, but whether it is acceptable to the people or not remains a question”. I.N.D.I.A. NDA 56 24 JHARKHAND ASSEMBLY RESULT 2024 Total Seats OTH 81/81 Ajay Jha RANCHI The BJP's victory march was halted once again in Jharkhand, leaving the party to ponder what went wrong there. The writing was on the wall. Even though the Lok Sabha elections were fought in the name of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the achievements of his government, the BJP had won nine of the 14 Lok Sabha seats in the state, three seats less than 12 it had won in 2019. The same trend continued and the BJP had to endure the ignominy of winning fewer seats than what it had secured in the state in the 2019 polls. It is apparent that Chief Minister Hemant Soren's arrest by the Enforcement Directorate in January went against the 1 Maaiya to the rescue Hemant Soren in Jharkhand had his copycat version of Ladki Bahin yojna in the form of Maaiya Samman Yojana which helped him garner votes and return to power. Under this scheme, which empowers women with financial support, women receive Rs 12,000 annually, with Rs 1,000 credited directly to their bank accounts every month. 4Continued on | P6 BJP as the state's electorate, especially Soren's fellow tribal voters, took it as an affront. 4Continued on | P6 in Jharkhand painful for me The party’s losspersonally is deeply Assam CM Himanta Sarma