BJP leads in Satara, Vikhe-Thorat panel sweeps Ahilyanagar in district bank polls

Results have been declared for the elections to the district central cooperative banks of Satara, Sangli and Ahilyanagar. The three banks in the state's cooperative sector had been closely watched for some time. The results have thrown up new equations in local politics. In Ahilyanagar the Vikhe-Thorat panel dominated, in Sangli the win of independent Sanjay Kaka Patil has changed the arithmetic of power, and in Satara the question now is who will take control of the bank.

In Satara, elections were held for 21 director posts on the district central cooperative bank. The BJP won 9 seats. Ajit Pawar's Nationalist Congress Party won 8, while Eknath Shinde's Shiv Sena got 4.

Notably, the three parties, which are partners in the Mahayuti alliance in the state, contested against one another in Satara. All eyes are now on which political combination will come together for the post of bank chairman. The BJP leads with the most seats, but the question of who holds power remains open.

The picture was different at the Ahilyanagar district bank. The Sahakar Vikas Panel, led by Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil and Balasaheb Thorat, won 18 of the 21 seats. BJP leader Ram Shinde's group got 2 seats. Nilesh Lanke, MP of Sharad Pawar's Nationalist Congress Party, also won. The results clearly show the dominance of the Vikhe-Thorat camp on this district bank.

The outcome in the Sangli district bank election was different again. The Congress-led Aghadi won 6 seats, the BJP 5, Sharad Pawar's NCP 4, the Shiv Sena 3 and Ajit Pawar's NCP 2.

Former MP Sanjay Kaka Patil won as an independent candidate. His margin of victory was just 2 votes. 11 seats are needed to form the administration, and his role in that calculation is considered crucial.

Overall, the results in the three districts have changed the political equations in the cooperative sector. Attention will now be on the moves to form administrations in Satara and Sangli.