Sat Nov 23 15:28:39 UTC 2024: ## Shiv Sena (UBT) Reclaims Bandra East in Close Three-Way Race

**Mumbai, [Date]:** Varun Sardesai of the Shiv Sena (UBT) has secured a victory in the fiercely contested Bandra East Assembly constituency, defeating NCP candidate Zeeshan Siddique by a margin of 9,805 votes. Sardesai garnered 54,351 votes in the election, marking a significant win for the Uddhav Thackeray faction of the Shiv Sena, reclaiming a seat previously considered a stronghold.

Siddique, who won the seat in 2019 on a Congress ticket, ran this time as an NCP candidate after joining Ajit Pawar’s faction. Despite his father’s recent death and the resulting sympathy, he was unable to overcome Sardesai’s campaign, which leveraged the enduring popularity of the Thackeray family in Mumbai. MNS candidate Trupti Prakash Sawant also contested the seat.

The Bandra East constituency, with 249,104 registered voters, saw a high-stakes battle. Sardesai’s win is a setback for Siddique and the Ajit Pawar faction of the NCP, while solidifying the Shiv Sena (UBT)’s position in Mumbai’s suburbs. This election marks a political shift in the region, with the Shiv Sena (UBT) reclaiming a key seat.

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