Maharashtra Assembly Election 2019, Washim profile: BJP hopes to retain SC-reserved constituency known for its coal mines

Washim Assembly Election 2019 | The Election Commission of India (ECI) announced the dates for the Maharashtra and Haryana Assembly elections. Voting for the 288-member Assembly will be held on 21 October in a single phase. The counting of votes and final results will be declared on 24 October, authorities said. The term of the Devendra Fadnavis-led current Maharashtra Assembly will end on 9 November.

The notification and nomination process for the Assembly elections was issued on 27 September. Candidates filed their nominations latest by 4 October. The scrutiny of nomination papers was done on 5 October and the last date to withdraw candidature from the electoral battle was 7 October. A total of 95,473 polling stations will be set up for over 8.95 crore voters in Maharashtra.

There is one reserved seat under Scheduled Caste category in the Washim district — Washim.

Representational image. Reuters

Constituency Name – Washim

Constituency Number – 34

District Name – Washim

Total Electors – 3,47,233

Female Electors – 1,66,090

Male Electors – 1,81,138

Third Gender — 5

Reserved – Yes (SC)

Results in previous elections: BJP leader Lakhan Sahadev Malik has been elected MLA from the Washim Assembly constituency consecutively in the last two elections. In 2014, he retained the Assembly seat by defeating candidates from the Shiv Sena and Congress.

He had wrested control of the seat in 2009 from Congress. BJP had won the seat in 1999 as well, however, in 2004, Congress' Ingale Suresh Bhiwaji had won the Assembly constituency with almost 42,131 votes defeating BJP candidate Motiram Saudagar Tupsande.

For the 2019 Assembly polls, The BJP has again fielded Lakhan Sahadev Malik, while the Congress has fielded Rajani Mahadev Rathod.

Demographics: Washim is a part of the Yavatmal-Washim Lok Sabha constituency, which also comprises of Yavatmal district along with five other Vidhan Sabha (Legislative Assembly) constituencies — Karanja, Ralegaon (ST), Yavatmal(ST), Digras and Pusad.

Washim Vidhan Sabha constituency is composed of Mangrulpir and Washim tehsils. Washim was carved out of the Akola district in 2001.

It was also among the districts that suffered from a drought earlier this year, with Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis urging the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) to relax the Model Code of Conduct ahead of the April-May Lok Sabha polls to carry out relief work.

 

October 11, 2019 at 04:37PM