Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis requested the BJP’s top leadership to relieve him of his ministerial duties on Wednesday, taking responsibility for the party’s disappointing performance in the Lok Sabha election in the state.

“Whatever loss we suffered in the LS polls in Maharashtra, I take full responsibility for it. Therefore, I urge the top leadership to relieve me of my ministerial duties for I need to work for the party and contribute my time to the preparations of the state assembly polls”, Fadnavis said.

“Farmers’ issues played a dominant role in some seats. Also, the false propaganda that the constitution would be altered impacted some voters. The votes of the Muslims and the Maratha community also had an impact”, he added.

The BJP’s tally in Maharashtra fell to nine seats, down from 23 in the 2019 polls. In contrast, the Congress slightly improved its performance, winning 13 seats in the state.

“I thank the people of the country who allowed Modiji (PM Narendra Modi) to take oath as the Prime Minister for the third time. The NDA performed well in Odisha and Andhra Pradesh as well”, Fadnavis said.

Taking a swipe at the INDIA bloc, Fadnavis said, “The BJP alone has gained more seats than the INDIA bloc. The propaganda that the constitution would be changed was spread by them. We should have stemmed it”.

Overall, the BJP won 240 seats in the recently concluded elections, significantly lower than the 303 seats it won in 2019 and the 282 seats it won in 2014. For the first time since 2014, the party fell short of the 272 majority mark by 32 seats.

On the other hand, the Congress saw its tally increase from 52 to 99 seats, with the party-led INDIA bloc crossing 230, defying exit poll predictions.

PM Modi is likely to be sworn in for a third term on June 8. Key allies of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) have pledged their support to the party after it fell short of a majority in parliament.

(With ANI input)