Bhandara: Bharatiya Janata Party leader Avinash Anandrao Bhahmankar defeated the sitting MLA and Congress leader Nanabhau Falgunrao Patole, popularly known as Nana Patole, by a margin of 658 votes. Bhahmankar received 95860 votes against Nanabhau's 95202 votes when counting was completed after 28 rounds on the seat.
Nanabhau's loss ended his chances of becoming the state's chief minister within the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance. He was defeated in a direct contest between the BJP and the Congress in this constituency, with Nanabhau expecting to sail through.
Also in the fray were Bahujan Samaj Party's Roshan Baburao Fule and Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi’s Dr. Avinash Nanhe. The road for Patole seemed easy, but the final verdict would come as a shocker for his supporters.
Patole was enjoying local connections and had done a lot of work for the masses. He was seen as the popular face of the Congress in Vidarbha, from where the grand old party was looking to win several seats. This is one of the key regions for the MVA if they have to come to the state.
One of the issues on which Patole banked was the farmers' suicide, hoping that the people of the region vote against the incumbent Maharashtra government.
