One of the most significant takehome from the recently held elections in Maharashtra is the almost obliteration of the third front which had planned to play kingmakers in the days to come. Omprakash Kadu (or Bachu Kadu as he is popularly known), the former minister and four times MLA from Achalpur in Amravati district, was defeated by BJP's Pravin Tayade. Kadu, a minister in the Mahayuti government, had fallen out with the BJP and had joined the third front or the Parivartan Mahasakti launched by Chhatrapati Sambhaji Raje. This third front included people such as farm leader and former MP Raju Shetti, Kadu, former MLAs and other smaller parties. Mahasakti had fielded 121 candidates in the elections but not a single candidate got elected, with many losing their deposits. Kadu’s loss was particularly serious as he has been representing the Achalpur seat since 2004. In Amravati, Kadu has built an image for himself as a commoner’s politician, who did not even shy away from physically abusing officers found guilty of dereliction of duty. This year, Kadu’s loss margin was over 12,000 votes with the Congress candidate coming third. This loss was particularly painful for Kadu as because in the Lok Sabha election, they managed to defeat Navneet Rana of BJP from Amravati. While speaking to The Indian Express, Kadu said the loss was unexpected and he is yet to understand the reason behind this. "We have to go back to the drawing board and see where we went wrong,” he said. Some of his close aides said the former minister had also talked of leaving politics as the loss had rattled him. Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi, the umbrella body led by Prakash Ambedkar, also had failed to make a mark this election. While speaking to The Indian Express, Ambedkar said they accept people’s verdict and would look into the reasons for the failure. At many places, the VBA spoilt the chances of the MVA. For example in the Nanded Lok Sabha seat which the Congress won by a paper thin margin of 1,457 votes, the VBA polled over 80,000 votes. In Akola East won by the BJP, VBA came third with 50,681 votes. While the party might not have won any seats, it did dent the chances of the MVA substantially. Many in Maharashtra say this failure of the third front came from the lack of homogeneity among the parties as well as the division of opposition votes is one of the reasons why this idea failed. Historically, the third option has not been accepted by Maharashtra which now is oscillating between a battered MVA and a much-rejuvenated Mahayuti. The present trend many feel would continue for the days to come.
