Chandrapur: In a political thriller that played out in Chandrapur on Tuesday morning, BJP clinched the mayor’s post by one vote, edging past the Congress-led alliance in a nail-biting finish with the score reading 32-31. BJP’s Sangita Khandekar was elected mayor.Congress’ fate was sealed due to the war within its ranks and BJP finding support from the unlikeliest of ‘friend’ — Shiv Sena (UBT) — and Asaduddin Owaisi’s AIMIM suddenly deciding to abstain. After the dramatic result, BJP corporators were heard saying — Ek vote ki kimat, tum kya jaano (what do you know about the power of one vote).And Congress big gun Vijay Wadettiwar’s high-profile visit to Matoshree in run-up to the mayoral election failed to yield dividends.When results of the 66-member civic body were declared nearly a month ago, Congress emerged as the single largest party with 27 corporators, followed by BJP 23. That’s when the intense numbers game began. Pre-poll allies Sena (UBT) and Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi together held the key, without whose support the magic figure was unattainable.However, a bitter feud between Congress Lok Sabha member Pratibha Dhanorkar and Wadettiwar over control of the civic body derailed negotiations with Sena UBT. Wadettiwar met Uddhav Thackeray and offered the mayor’s post, but the deal collapsed as the Congress high command failed to persuade Dhanorkar to resolve internal rivalry. The conflict spilled onto the streets, with Wadettiwar alleging that “someone” attempted to kidnap his corporators from a bus on the highway.Amidst this, BJP veteran MLA Sudhir Mungantiwar moved swiftly, reaching out to Sena UBT — despite the two parties being bitter rivals at the state level. Drawing on his political acumen, BJP veteran MLA Sudhir Mungantiwar sweetened the deal by offering UBT a 15-month stint as mayor on a rotational basis, while also backing an Independent for the deputy mayor’s post to bolster numbers.For the past two days, Chandrapur’s political grapevine was abuzz with speculation that BJP had sealed a pact with Sena UBT and its ally VBA, which together accounted for eight corporators.By Tuesday morning, as corporators assembled to vote, the arithmetic appeared to favour BJP with 34 votes — its own 23, one from ally Shinde Sena, six from Sena UBT, two from VBA, and two independents. The Congress-led bloc, meanwhile, was left with just 32 — seemingly headed for defeat.Then the script took a dramatic turn. VBA’s two corporators failed to turn up for voting, reducing the BJP-led alliance to 32 — equal to Congress. Just as Congress sensed a possible comeback, AIMIM’s lone corporator Azhar Shaikh announced he would abstain. Speaking later, Shaikh said, “Congress never approached us, never showed us respect and treated us as untouchables. That’s why I abstained.”That single decision handed BJP the mayor’s post by one vote. Mungantiwar later said the alliance with Sena UBT was forged “in the interest of Chandrapur’s development and to break the political deadlock.”The drama, however, wasn’t over. During the deputy mayor’s election, Shaikh reversed course and voted for the Congress-backed candidate, resulting in a 32-32 tie. Even then, luck favoured BJP, as the tie-breaker draw went the saffron party’s way.As per the agreement, BJP and Sena UBT will share the mayor’s post for 15 months each, after which the roster will change and fresh elections will be held. In the end, Congress walked away with a rare and painful distinction —snatching defeat from the jaws of victory.
