On the morning after the Maharashtra Assembly election results, Shaina N.C., former BJP spokesperson who switched to the Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde faction) to contest from the Mumbadevi constituency in Mumbai, broadcast a message on WhatsApp. She had polled over 40,000 votes, more than any previous Shiv Sena candidate in Mumbadevi, "despite not one Muslim vote", she said of her loss to Amin Patel of the Congress. Patel won his fourth election from the iconic constituency named after a temple to a goddess who gives the financial capital its name.
Shaina told THE WEEK that 40,000 women, including 15,000 Muslims, had enrolled for the Mukhyamantri Majhi Ladki Bahin Yojana in the Mumbadevi assembly constituency. The scheme entails a payment of 1,500 every month to all women aged between 21 and 65 years in families with an annual income below 2.5 lakh.
“It was a game-changer and a phenomenal endeavour by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde,” she said, “and it changed the way women voted because these kinds of welfare schemes really impact their lives.”
Much like in other states—Mamata Banerjee in West Bengal and Shivraj Singh Chouhan in Madhya Pradesh owe huge victories to similar schemes—the Ladki Bahin programme is being acknowledged as a major driving force behind the Mahayuti victory. It is little wonder then that Devendra Fadnavis and Shinde both thanked the state’s women voters—the state recorded a 6 per cent increase in women voters’ turnout compared with the 2019 election.
Another significant increase in voter turnout was in Thane district, Shinde’s home turf. It was seen as an outcome of his personal goodwill and the flurry of sops introduced in the final weeks of his government, including a removal of road toll tax at key entry points into Mumbai city. The district recorded a turnout of 53.1 per cent against 48.03 per cent in 2019. Shinde’s own assembly constituency of Kopri-Pachpakhadi recorded a rise of nearly 6 per cent from 2019.
Denne historien er fra December 08, 2024-utgaven av THE WEEK India.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent ? Logg på
Denne historien er fra December 08, 2024-utgaven av THE WEEK India.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
Forging the future
As the curtain falls on 2024, I take pride in the extraordinary milestones achieved under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. This year stands as a testament to the Modi government's resolve to forge a resilient and forward-looking Bharat. From groundbreaking advancements in infrastructure to visionary global initiatives, these efforts resonate deeply with the vision of Viksit Bharat.
Our strange democracy
Abraham Lincoln is lauded as among the very best presidents the US ever had: the statesman par excellence successfully steered the nation through the devastating and perilous years of the American civil war. Not only did Lincoln manage to keep his country united, he also ensured the passage of the 13th amendment to the US constitution, which abolished slavery.
Five years of post-pandemic fashion
It has been five years since we discovered what Covid-19 was, and five years since it disrupted the world forever. The World Health Organization activated their emergency systems on January 1, 2020, and informed the world by January 4, 2020. By the end of that week, they had set guidelines for various countries to follow. Comparable to the Spanish flu of 1918, more than 7 million people have died of Covid according to official data. Unofficially, no one has an idea. WHO has just this week asked China to provide critical data to understand the virus's origins as a “moral and scientific imperative”.
Community spirit
Rhythm of Dammam opens a window to the world of African-origin Siddis of Uttara Kannada
'Breaking' down a scandal
Society Girl is not just a case study of a high-profile death in Pakistan but also a stark commentary on media trials
Progress card
Jasmine Shah's book tells you what the AAP has achieved in Delhi in the last 10 years
SENSE IN NONSENSE
In his latest book of poetry, Ruskin Bond is at his funniest
Get ready for Trump bump
The ‘butterfly effect’ is a beautiful, mysterious metaphor of the planet’s interconnectedness.
QUIET FLOWS THE FAITH
The melding of an ancient amorphous faith and the latest science; of an antique tradition and new practices; ways of life older than memory and new expressions is happening at Prayagraj in Uttar Pradesh.
Trash to treasure
How a weed-choked Dal Lake spurred Maninder Singh's journey to become a waste management visionary
