Congress retains Nagpur Graduates' seat, warns Fadnavis: 'Just a trailer'
Synopsis
Congress has pulled off a symbolically loaded win in Nagpur — the BJP-RSS heartland and CM Fadnavis's own political backyard — defeating the BJP by 3,271 votes after a 45-hour count. The result was made more damaging by Fadnavis deleting a premature victory taunt on social media, giving Congress a double gift: a win on the ground and a humiliation online. The party's warning of a 2029 reckoning signals this result will be weaponised for the long campaign ahead.
Key Takeaways
Congress candidate Abhijit Wanjari won the Nagpur Graduates' Constituency by 3,271 votes , defeating BJP's Sudhakar Kohale ( 67,231 vs 63,960 votes).
The result came after a 45-hour counting process in a constituency considered the stronghold of CM Devendra Fadnavis and Union Minister Nitin Gadkari .
Fadnavis reportedly deleted a premature social media taunt after the final result went against the BJP, triggering sharp criticism from MPCC .
Congress warned Fadnavis: 'This is just a trailer' , projecting the result as a precursor to a larger political shift in 2029 .
Senior Congress MP Pawan Khera used the ballot-paper election results to renew demands for Lok Sabha and Assembly polls via ballot paper instead of EVMs.
Congress also reiterated demands to stay the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) programme and reinstate 13 crore allegedly removed voters .
The Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC) on Thursday, 29 October 2026, launched a blistering attack on Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis after the party retained the Nagpur Graduates' Constituency seat in a closely fought Legislative Council election — a result that carries outsized political symbolism given Nagpur's status as the home turf of both Fadnavis and Union Minister Nitin Gadkari.
How the Victory Unfolded
Congress candidate Abhijit Wanjari defeated Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) nominee Sudhakar Kohale by a margin of 3,271 votes, securing 67,231 votes against Kohale's 63,960. The result emerged after a gruelling counting process that stretched over 45 hours, keeping the political temperature in the state at a boil through the night and into the following day.
The defeat is being widely read as a significant blow to the BJP, not least because Nagpur is considered the heartland of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and the political home ground of two of Maharashtra's most prominent Bharatiya Janata Party figures. Both Fadnavis and Gadkari had campaigned vigorously for Kohale in the run-up to polling.
The Deleted Post That Ignited a Row
The fallout from the result was sharpened by a social media misstep. Following early trends in Legislative Council elections across multiple states, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had shared a post targeting the Congress over its performance in those contests. Chief Minister Fadnavis then posted a taunt on social media, reportedly mocking Congress for allegedly failing to win a single seat. Once the final Nagpur result swung in Congress's favour, Fadnavis deleted the post — a move that quickly became the central talking point of the day.
The Congress pounced on the deletion. Taking to X, the party wrote: 'By deleting the post, Fadnavis has once again lived up to the legacy of Savarkar. Acting as though he had struck a major blow before the final results were even out, Fadnavis posted prematurely. However, that very arrow rebounded and hit him in the chest! Ultimately, he was forced to delete the post.'
Congress Issues a 2029 Warning
The party did not stop at mockery. In a pointed message addressed directly to the Chief Minister, Congress warned: 'Fadnavis ji, scared already? This is just a trailer! In 2029, the people of Maharashtra will dismantle your political dominance in a way that will make you remember today's post. All the best, Fadnavis ji! Get ready for the next jolt.' The warning frames the Nagpur result as an early indicator of a larger political realignment heading into the next Maharashtra Assembly election cycle.
Congress Widens Attack to Modi and EVM Demand
The political counter-offensive broadened to target Prime Minister Modi directly. Senior Congress leader and Member of Parliament Pawan Khera challenged the Prime Minister on the question of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs), noting that the Legislative Council elections in Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Bihar, and Karnataka — conducted via ballot papers across 28 seats — had delivered a different verdict from recent EVM-based polls. 'If Narendra Modi firmly believes that Electronic Voting Machines have no impact on election outcomes, he should stop playing with words and prove the BJP's electoral strength through action by holding the upcoming Lok Sabha and Assembly elections using ballot papers,' Khera said.
The party also reiterated its demands to stay the controversial Special Intensive Revision (SIR) programme of electoral rolls, reinstate the 13 crore voters allegedly removed through irregular procedures, and initiate action against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. This comes amid a sustained Congress campaign questioning the integrity of the electoral machinery, which the party has been pressing since the last general election cycle.
What This Means Going Forward
The Nagpur Graduates' result is unlikely to alter Maharashtra's current power arithmetic, but its symbolic weight is considerable. For the Congress, a win in the RSS heartland — however narrow — offers a morale boost and a ready-made political narrative ahead of local body polls and the 2029 state elections. For the BJP, the challenge is to prevent the narrative from hardening into a perception of vulnerability in its own stronghold. All eyes will now be on how Fadnavis and the party's central leadership respond to both the result and the growing EVM debate.
Point of View
271 in a graduate constituency is modest; the symbolic damage to the BJP — losing in the RSS nerve centre, and losing after its own Chief Minister taunted Congress prematurely — is disproportionate to the seat's legislative weight. What is strategically significant is how Congress is now explicitly framing this as a trailer for 2029, anchoring an early counter-narrative while the BJP is still managing the optics of a deleted post. The EVM angle, folded in by Pawan Khera, is equally telling: Congress is using ballot-paper-based wins to systematically build a legal and public pressure case for election reform. Whether that case gains traction in courts or in public opinion ahead of 2029 will determine whether this Nagpur moment is a blip or the opening chapter of a genuine Maharashtra comeback story.
NationPress
29 Oct 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
Who won the Nagpur Graduates' Constituency election?
Congress candidate Abhijit Wanjari won the Nagpur Graduates' Constituency election, defeating BJP's Sudhakar Kohale by 3,271 votes. Wanjari secured 67,231 votes against Kohale's 63,960 in a count that lasted over 45 hours.
Why is the Nagpur Graduates' result politically significant?
Nagpur is considered the home ground of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Union Minister Nitin Gadkari, both of whom campaigned for the BJP candidate. It is also widely regarded as an RSS stronghold, making the Congress victory symbolically damaging beyond its immediate electoral weight.
Why did Devendra Fadnavis delete his social media post?
Fadnavis had reportedly posted a taunt mocking Congress over Legislative Council election results before the Nagpur count concluded. Once the final Nagpur result tilted in Congress's favour, he deleted the post — a move the Congress publicly ridiculed, comparing it to what they called 'the legacy of Savarkar.'
What is Congress's demand regarding EVMs?
Senior Congress MP Pawan Khera demanded that upcoming Lok Sabha and Assembly elections be held using ballot papers rather than Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs), arguing that BJP's performance in the ballot-paper-based Legislative Council elections undermines its claim that EVMs have no impact on outcomes.
What other demands has Congress made alongside the Nagpur win?
Beyond the EVM demand, Congress has called for a stay on the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) programme of electoral rolls, the reinstatement of 13 crore voters allegedly removed through irregular procedures, and action against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
