The BJP-Shiv Sena alliance fell short of its ambitious target of 220-plus seats but has secured a clear majority in the 288-member Maharashtra assembly. The BJP won 96 seats and leading in 9, INC won 39 seats and leading in 5 and NCP won 51 seats and leading in 3 as per reports coming in at 10 pm.

The BJP will end up winning fewer seats in 2019 compared to the 2014 Assembly polls, but its “strike rate” is better this time, and the ruling alliance will retain power in Maharashtra, said Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Thursday.

Uddhav Thackeray, the Shiv Sena boss who had reluctantly accepted the junior partner status in Maharashtra elections, on Thursday delivered a sharp reminder to its alliance partner Bharatiya Janata Party that it should not take government formation for granted in Maharashtra.

Sena spokesperson Sanjay Raut said that the party’s alliance with the BJP will continue and that the two sides had “agreed on a 50-50 formula”—a reference to the ratio in which it expects ministerial posts to be divided between the allies—should they form the government.

The NCP chief Sharad Pawar on Thursday took a jibe at the ruling BJP’s strategy of poaching several opposition leaders ahead of the assembly polls and said people have sent a message they did not like the “arrogance of power”.

Watch LIVE | Elections With HT: Latest updates, sharpest analysis and more on Assembly elections 2019

Follow all the highlights on Maharashtra election result 2019:

9:14 pm IST Devendra Fadnavis collects his winning certificate Nagpur: Maharashtra CM and BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis collects his winning certificate. He has won from Nagpur South West assembly constituency. Nagpur: Maharashtra CM and BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis collects his winning certificate. He has won from Nagpur South West assembly constituency. #MaharashtraAssemblyPolls pic.twitter.com/GV9xZ0Bxsn — ANI (@ANI) October 24, 2019





7:44 pm IST Want to thank people of Haryana and Maharashtra: PM Modi Prime Minister Narendra Modi addresses BJP workers at the party headquarters in Delhi: Even before Diwali, the way people of Haryana and Maharashtra have put their faith in BJP, I want to thank them from the core of my heart. Prime Minister Narendra Modi addresses BJP workers at the party headquarters in Delhi: Even before Diwali, the way people of Haryana and Maharashtra have put their faith in BJP, I want to thank them from the core of my heart. pic.twitter.com/asiWNFkNle — ANI (@ANI) October 24, 2019





6:50 pm IST People of Maharashtra have blessed the NDA with immense affection: PM Modi PM Modi: People of Maharashtra have blessed the NDA with immense affection. We are humbled to have got people’s support yet again. Our work towards Maharashtra’s progress continues. I salute each and every Karyakarta of BJP, Shiv Sena and our entire NDA family for their hardwork.





6:40 PM IST Humbled to have got people’s support yet again in Maharashtra, says PM Modi Humbled to have got people’s support yet again in Maharashtra, says PM Narendra Modi.





6:09 pm IST I express my gratitude to the people of Maharashtra: Nitin Gadkari Union Minister Nitin Gadkari: I express my gratitude to the people of Maharashtra and thank them for bringing back this government once again. I extend my greetings to Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, BJP President Amit Shah and PM Narendra Modi for this electoral victory. Union Minister Nitin Gadkari: I express my gratitude to the people of Maharashtra & thank them for bringing back this govt once again. I extend my greetings to CM Devendra Fadnavis, BJP President Amit Shah & PM Narendra Modi for this electoral victory. #MaharashtraAssemblyPolls pic.twitter.com/WOgpaMVxGw — ANI (@ANI) October 24, 2019





5:54 pm IST Amit Shah thanks voters of Maharashtra for reposing their trust in BJP-Sena alliance Amit Shah thanks voters of Maharashtra for reposing their trust in BJP-Sena alliance, reports PTI.





05:12 pm IST Time to celebrate, not analyse: Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis “In fact, it is time to celebrate and not analyse. But if we look at the result, the BJP had in 2014 contested 260 seats and won 122. This time, we fought 164 and are likely to get 105. Our strike is rate better, we won 70 per cent of the seats,” he said.





05:05 pm IST Soon you will get to know what was decided between BJP-Sena: Fadnavis “We are going to ahead according to what has been decided between Shiv Sena and us (BJP). What has been decided is something which you will get to know when the time is right,” Devendra Fadnavis said.





04:56 pm IST Rebels who left us, want to come back: Fadnavis “15 candidates who fought independently, or the rebels who left us, have called me so far and they want to come back, and we do have a space for them,” said Devendra Fadnavis





04:53 pm IST People of Maharashtra gave a clear mandate to BJP-Sena alliance: Fadnavis I want to thank the people of Maharashtra for giving a clear mandate to BJP and Shiv Sena alliance. Next government will be of BJP-Sena grand alliance.





04:50 pm IST Compared to last years, we got lesser seats this year: CM Fadnavis “We got lesser seats compared to last year, but we did our best to serve Maharashtra and we gave our best,” says Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis.





04:46 pm IST I should allow my party to grow: Uddhav Thackeray “We had agreed to contest fewer seats (than the BJP), but I cannot accommodate the BJP every time. I should allow my party to grow,” Shiv Sena’s Uddhav Thackeray said, hinting that the discussion with the BJP will be a tough one.





04:43 pm IST Who wil be CM? asks Uddhav Thackeray While addressing the media, Shiv Sena leader Uddhav Thackeray spoke about the 50-50 formula and said, “the main question is, who will be the chief minister?”





04:35 pm IST Reached a formula when Shah came to my house, time to implement it: Uddhav Uddhav Thackeray while addressing a press conference, talked about BJP and Shiv Sena’s 50-50 formula. “It is time to remind the BJP about the formula arrived at when BJP chief Amit Shah visited my home....we had decided on 50:50 formula for the alliance,” PTI quoted Uddhav as saying.





04:10 pm IST Shiv Sena’s Aaditya Uddhav Thackeray wins from Worli Shiv Sena’s Aaditya Uddhav Thackeray wins from Worli, the constituency that marks his electoral debut.





03:35 pm IST BJP wins 18 seats, leading from 84 constituencies As of trends at 03:30 pm, of 288 constituencies, BJP has won 18 seats so far and is leading in 84, whereas its alley has won 12 seats and is leading in 44. The Nationalist Congress Party and Congress together are leading from 19 constituencies, whereas they are leading from 78 seats.





03:15 pm IST In Pune, BJP loses Hadapsar The BJP’s sitting MLA Yogesh Tilekar lost the Hadapsar seat to NCP’s Chetan Tupe. As of early trends, the Wadgaonsheri constituency, BJP’s sitting MLA Jagdish Mulik was trailing against NCP’s Sunil Tingre. The early trends in Pune were disappointing for the BJP which had swept all the eight seats in Pune city in the 2014 polls.





02:55 pm IST Shiv Sena might lose Bandra East seat to Congress As per 18th round, Congress’ Zeeshan Siddique is leading against Mumbai Mayor and Shiv Sena candidate Vishwanath Mahadeshwar in Bandra East which is a seat of prestige for Shiv Sena, considering it is home to Thackeray family. However, final counting is not completed yet.





02:42 pm IST 11 of 15 defectors, who deserted Congress-NCP, leading At least 11 of the 15 defectors who had deserted Congress and Nationalist Congress Party ahead of the Assembly elections, are leading as per the trends of the counting which is underway. Former Congress leader Harshavardhan Patil, NCP’s sitting MLA Vaibhav Pichad, former NCP MLA Dilip Sopal, former NCP MP Udayanaraje, former NCP leader Rashmi Bagul are trailing in their respective constituencies though other defectors have been leading from theirs.





02:24 pm IST People did not like arrogance of power: Sharad Pawar “People have not accepted the talk of 220 seats (out of 288). The NCP accepts people’s mandate humbly. The Congress, NCP, PWP, Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghatana and other allies whole-heartedly co-operated with each other. The election result shows people did not like the arrogance of power,” PTI quoted Sharad Pawar as saying.





02:00 pm IST Sharad Pawar slams PM Modi for his ‘drown in shame’ remark On Thursday, NCP chief slammed prime minister Narendra Modi for his ‘drown in shame’ remark. NCP president Sharad Pawar had earlier told HT that the BJP was bringing up the issue of Article 370 again and again during the Maharashtra poll campaign to “divert attention” from real issues. On October 17, PM Modi launched a searing attack on the opposition for targeting the government over its decision to scrap the special status of Jammu and Kashmir. He had said the opposition should “drown in shame” for saying that the BJP was trying to divert attention with its Kashmir move.





01:48 pm IST Going with Shiv Sena is out of question, says Sharad Pawar At the press briefing, Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar was asked what’s next for the party after not securing enough seats and if they were planning a tie up with Shiv Sena, to which, the leader said that going with Shiv Sena is “out of question”. “Going with Shiv Sena is against NCP’s policy,” Sharad Pawar said.





01:42 pm IST We will soon hold a meeting to discuss certain things: Pawar NCP President, Sharad Pawar: We will soon hold a meeting to discuss certain things about the elections, with our supporters and decide our future course of action. We have tried to perform to the best of our abilities.





01:38 pm IST Defections have not worked in favour of those who left: Sharad Pawar “One important thing to see is that people who left us, have not been accepted. Defections have not worked in favour of those who left,” ANI quoted Sharad Pawar as saying.





01:34 pm IST Power comes, power goes but it is important to remain committed to a cause: NCP president Sharad Pawar “The Opposition has worked hard and all members of Congress-NCP & allies have delivered and given their best. I thank them all. Power comes, power goes but it is important to remain committed to a cause and we thank people for the love they showed,” NCP president Sharad Pawar said at a press briefing.





01:30 pm IST Shiv Sena candidate Ramesh Latke at counting centre Shiv Sena candidate Ramesh Latke at counting center at gundavali municipal high school,Andheri (E). photo by Satyabrata Tripathy/ht





01:20 pm IST Youngsters voted for me, says Congress’ Zeeshan Siddique who is leading from Bandra East Congress candidate Zeeshan Siddique is leading from Bandra East. “Youngsters voted for me and the public mandate was with me,” he told HT reporter. Siddique, the 27-year-old, is youngest candidate contesting from Mumbai.





01:05 pm IST People happy with good governance of BJP in Maharashtra: Shivraj Chouhan Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Thursday said that the people of Maharashtra and Haryana are happy with BJP’s good governance in the states, according to ANI. “BJP is surging ahead in Haryana and Maharashtra and will form the governments with a majority in the two states. People are happy with the good governance given by Manohar Lal Khattar and Devendra Fadnavis. They have supported us,” ANI quoted him as saying.





12:50 pm IST People celebrate at BJP state office in Mumbai Ahead of assembly election 2019 results in Maharashtra, BJP supporters gathered outside the party’s state office in Mumbai to celebrate BJP’s steady leady.





12:38 pm IST BJP’s Ramesh Singh Thakur marches ahead of Aslam Shaikh As of trends that came in at 12:20 pm, BJP candidate Ramesh Singh Thakur has taken a swift lead from Malad West, where Congress’ Aslam Shaikh was leading earlier.





12:22pm IST Shiv Sena candidate Mangesh Kudalkar ahead from Kurla In Kurla constituency 15th round, Shiv Sena candidate Mangesh Kudalkar ahead with 21,932 votes against NCP candidate Milind Kamble.





12:08 am IST Shiv Sena party supporters celebrate outside counting centre As Shiv Sena candidate Yamini Jadhav took a strong lead from Bycyulla, Mumbai, the party supporters gathered around the counting centre to celebrate.





11:50 am IST We agreed upon 50-50 formula: Shiv Sena’s Sanjay Raut “I am going to meet Uddhav Ji. Numbers aren’t that bad. Yes, we will definitely continue with the alliance. We have agreed upon a 50-50 formula,” ANI quoted Shiv Sena’s Sanjay Raut as saying. #WATCH Sanjay Raut, Shiv Sena: I am going to meet Uddhav Ji. Number itne bure bhi nahi hain, aisa hota hai kabhi kabhi. Yes, we will definitely continue with the alliance. We have agreed upon a 50-50 formula. #MaharashtraAssemblyPolls2019 pic.twitter.com/ae0bJUNI8q — ANI (@ANI) October 24, 2019





11:38 am IST BJP’s Vidya Thakur leads from Goregaon BJP candidate Vidya Thakur is leading from Goregaon constituency against Congress candidate Yuvaraj Mohite.





11:29 am IST Shiv Sena supporters celebrate as Dilip Lande leads from Chandivli Shiv sena supporters took to streets to celebrate as the Shiv Sena candidate Dilip Lande takes lead against Congress candidate Naseem Khan from Chandivli constituency.





11:17 am IST Shiv Sena candidate and ex-Mayor Sunil Prabhu leads from Dindoshi Shiv Sena Candidate and ex- Mayor Sunil Prabhu is leading from Dindoshi against NCP candidate Vidya Chavan.





11:05 am IST Shiv Sena’s Ramesh Korgaonkar takes lead against Cong’s Suresh Koparkar Shiv Sena’s Ramesh Korgaonkar has now taken a smooth lead against Congress’ Suresh Koparkar in Bhandup west assembly constituency.





10:57 am IST Maharashtra CM Fadnavis continues to lead from Nagpur Southwest Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis continues to lead from Nagpur Southwest constituency.





10:50 am IST Congress candidate Aslam Shaikh leads from Malad west Congress candidate Aslam Shaikh is leading from Malad West constituencies against BJP candidate Ramesh Singh Thakur.





10:42 am IST BJP’s Harshvardhan Patil leads from Pune’s Indapur seat The Bharatiya Janata Party’s Harshvardhan Patil is ahead of his Nationalist Congress Party rival Dattatray Bharne from Indapur seat in Pune.





10:35 am IST BJP state president Chandrakant Patil leads from Kothrud Assembly seat BJP state president Chandrakant Patil is leading from Kothrud assembly seat in Pune, pushing his MNS rival Kishor Shinde to trail poorly.





10:26 am IST Congress leads in 87 constituencies According to early trends, the Congress is leading in 87 constituencies. The party has already crossed its 2014 losing mark of 83.





10:17 am IST ‘BJP-Shiv Sena will win more than 220 seats,’ says BJP leader Rahul Narvekar The Bharatiya Janata Party’s Colaba candidate Rahul Narvekar on Thursday said that the BJP-Shiv Sena alliance together will win more than 220 seats in assembly elections 2019.





10:10 am IST BJP-Shiv Sena alliance ahead with over 180 seats The Bharatiya Janata Party and Shiv Sena’s alliance seems to have made an impact during electoral campaign for the assembly elections 2019 as the alliance is away ahead with 180 seats as per the early trends.





10:02 am IST Shiv Sena leader Ravindra Waikar leads from Jogeshwari East Shiv Sena candidate and minister in Devendra Fadnavis government Ravindra Waikar is leading from Jogeshwari East assembly seat.





09:52 am IST BJP’s Sunil Rane leading in Borivali The Bharatiya Janata Party’s Sunil Rane is leading from Mumbai’s Borivali constituencies.





09:40 am IST NCP does better than parent party in Western Maharashtra Going by the early trends, the Sharad Pawar led Nationalist Congress Party appears to doing far better than its parent party, Congress, in Western Maharashtra.





09:28 am IST NCP’s Suresh Mane, pitted against Aaditya Thackeray, trails Shiv Sena leader Aaditya Thackeray took an easy lead in Worli assembly constituency. This is the 29-year-old’s electoral debut. Nationalist Congress Party’s Suresh Mane, who is pitted against Aaditya Thackeray, is trailing.





09:19 am IST BJP’s Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil leads After first round of counting, the BJP’s Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil is leading with 6313 votes from Shirdi assembly constituency, according to ANI.





09:14 am IST Congress leads in 78 seats, according to early trends The grand old national party is leading in 78 constituencies according to the early trends. In 2014 assembly elections, the Congress party faced a major loss by winning just 83 seats.





09:10 am IST Early trends show BJP-Shiv Sena candidates leading in over 174 seats Going by the early trends, the Bharatiya Janata Party-Shiv Sena candidates are leading with 174 seats. On the other hand, Congress-Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) candidates are leading in 78 constituencies.





09:06 am IST BJP-Shiv Sena alliance leads in 72 seats According to data provided by C-Voter, the early trends show the BJP-Shiv Sena alliance leading in Maharashtra with 72 assembly seats. Whereas its rival, the Congress has managed to secure just about 31 seats. Early exit polls predicted a strong win for the BJP and second term for Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis.





08:59 am IST Who is leading from where so far: Shiv Sena Shiv Sena leader Eknath Shinde is leading





08:46 am IST Who is leading from where so far: Congress Rohit Pawar, the grand nephew of former union minister Sharad Pawar, is leading from Kajrat-Jamkhed seat, his first assembly constituency. Ajit Pawar from Baramati constituency Vishwajeet Kadam ahead NCP leader Chhagan Bhujbal is leading from Nandgaon constituency





08:39 am IST Who is leading from where so far: BJP Bharatiya Janata Party Pankaja Munde leading Bhimrao Anandrao Dhonde Devendra Fadnavis leading Rahul Narwekar leading from Colaba Chandrakant Patil leads Ashish Shelar leading





08:27 am IST Shiv Sena leader Aaditya Thackeray leads from Worli The early trends show Shiv Sena leader Aaditya Thackeray leading from Mumbai’s Worli constituency in Mumbai.





08:18 am IST CM Devendra Fadnavis leads from Nagpur Southwest According to early trends, Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis is leading from Nagpur Southwest. If the Bharatiya Janata Party-Shiv Sena alliance retains power in Maharashtra, Devendra Fadnavis will most likely serve his second term in the state as chief minister.





08:10 am IST Early trends show BJP leading in Maharashtra Going by the early trends, the Bharatiya Janata Party is leading in Maharashtra. The Bharatiya Janata Party, which is contesting in 288 seats, took off smoothly as the counting for the assembly elections 2019 began. The party is currently leading with 46 seats of 288 it contested, according to the early trends.





08:00 am IST All eyes on Maharashtra as counting begins All eyes on Maharashtra as counting for the assembly elections 2019 begins. The BJP-Sena alliance seeks to retain power in the state.





07:50 am IST Counting for Haryana assembly election 2019 to begin soon The counting of votes for the Haryana assembly election 2019 will begin at 8 am. Catch all the live updates on Haryana assembly election results here





07:32 am IST Catch all the updates on Assembly elections 2019 here The counting of votes for 2019 assembly elections in Maharashtra and Haryana will begin shortly. Follow all the live updates on the Assembly election 2019 here





07:19 am IST What exit polls predicted for the Congress Going by the exit poll predictions, things don’t look too good for the grand old party which faced a historic low in 2014 by securing only 41 seats. The exit poll conducted by News18-IPSOS, the Congress will hit another historic low in 2019 Maharashtra assembly election by winning only 17 seats.





06:58 am IST What exit polls predicted for the BJP As the voting for 2019 assembly elections concluded on Monday, the exit polls started to pour in. The most positive prediction for the Bharatiya Janata Party for Maharashtra came from the News18-IPSOS poll which predicted that the party would get 141 seats of the 164 it contested. Whereas its ally, the Shive Sena would secure 102 of the 124 seats the party contested. Going by this prediction, the BJP-Shiv Sena alliance would win fourth-fifth majority in the 2019 assembly election. For the state, the most optimistic projection for the BJP came from the News18-IPSOS poll. It predicted that the party would alone get 141 of the 164 seats it contested. Its now junior alliance partner, the Shiv Sena, would win 102 seats of the 124 it contested. This would give the alliance an overwhelming fourth-fifth majority in the assembly.





06:50 am IST 288 assembly constituencies in Maharashtra In 2014, all the parties contested the assembly elections separately. The BJP won 122 seats, whereas the Shiv Sena, its current ally, won 63. The Congress won a historic low of 42 seats in 2014 elections. Maharashtra has 288 assembly constituencies in total.





06:40 am IST Tough fight between BJP and Congress After winning a huge majority in the Lok Sabha elections, if the Bharatiya Janata Party comes in power in Maharashtra yet again, it will only reinforce its pole position in the national politics. The numbers will also show whether the Congress-led opposition was able to fight back its Lok Sabha elections loss in this Assembly elections or not.



