MUMBAI, June 23 -- The BJP-led Mahayuti alliance has won 16 of the 17 seats in the state legislative council elections, but the loss of the lone seat, the Nashik seat, could spark fresh tensions between the alliance partners, the BJP and the Shiv Sena - the rebel BJP candidate Gokul Geete, who defeated the Sena's Narendra Darade in Nashik, announced on Monday that he will join the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena as an associate member in the legislative council. In Nashik, Geete defeated the Mahayuti's official candidate, the Sena's Narendra Darade, raising allegations of cross-voting and tacit support from sections of the BJP. Geete, who contested as an independent candidate, secured 357 votes, while Darade polled 248 votes. The results of the 17 seats, polling for which was held on June 18, were declared on Monday. The BJP won 11, Sena three, and the NCP two. The 17 th seat was bagged by the BJP rebel, Gukul Geete. The opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) did not win a single seat. The legislators were elected by elected representatives in urban and rural local bodies. Geete's win has caused quite a flutter, with Sena chief Eknath Shinde turning an embarrassing loss into a triumph. Emboldened by the defection of six Sena (UBT) MPs to his party, Shinde invited Geete to join the Sena. The rebel BJP candidate lost no time arriving in Mumbai to meet the Sena chief and deputy chief minister. "Impressed by the working style of deputy chief minister Eknath Shinde and his commitment towards the people, I decided to join his party. I will work for the party and am ready to take up any organisational responsibility if assigned by the leadership," said Geete in Mumbai. Under the anti-defection law, an individual elected to the legislature as an independent candidate cannot join any party on the floor of the house. However, he or she can become an associate member of the party. Earlier, following is victory, Geeta had said, "I had backed out of the election due to pressure from leaders of both the BJP and Shiv Sena. However, my workers and supporters took over the campaign and ensured my victory. I thank the MVA and Islam Party voters, who supported me. I won because of the inactivity of sitting MLC and Sena candidate Narendra Darade." Sena leaders in Nashik tell a different story. They say Geete's victory was enabled by the tacit support of BJP leaders. Geete, brother of local BJP leader Ganesh Geete, is believed to have received not only BJP votes but also support from some NCP and opposition corporators and local body members. Meanwhile, losing candidate Narendra Darade accused leaders within the ruling alliance of betrayal. "Both my party and I were backstabbed by the two alliance partners," said Darade. The development is expected to further strain relations between the BJP and Sena, with Sena leaders already raising concerns over possible cross-voting. Senior BJP leader and water resources minister Girish Mahajan said, "The defeat of the Mahayuti candidate in Nashik is shocking for us. We collectively had 475 votes, but our official candidate received only 248 votes. I tried until the last moment to persuade Gokul Geete, but we could not succeed. I will meet deputy chief minister Eknath Shinde to discuss the issue." Sena minister and industries minister Uday Samant said, "It is clear that we failed to consolidate the Mahayuti votes, resulting in the defeat of our candidate. We are preparing a report analysing the reasons and identifying those responsible for the defeat of the ruling alliance candidate. The report will be submitted to the chief minister and both deputy chief ministers." According to the Mahayuti seat-sharing arrangement, the BJP contested 11 seats, the Sena four and NCP two seats. Six seats were won unopposed after opposition candidates withdrew from the contest. The elections, conducted through secret ballot, witnessed cross-voting from both the ruling and opposition alliances. The MVA suffered major setbacks due to cross-voting in five constituencies, while the Mahayuti failed to secure votes equivalent to its strength in four constituencies. In Amravati, Congress candidate Harshadeep Deshmukh did not receive a single vote despite the MVA's strength of 150 votes. In Jalgaon, 41 votes went against the official candidate, while in Osmanabad-Latur-Beed, 114 voters did not support the alliance candidate. In Nanded, 35 opposition voters cross-voted, while in Nagpur, 81 votes shifted in favour of Mahayuti candidates. In Nashik, 218 ruling alliance voters voted against the official candidate. Cross-voting was also reported in Satara-Sangli (53 votes), Parbhani-Hingoli (65 votes), and Bhandara-Gondia (13 votes). Congress leader Nana Patole said, "The result was expected, given our strength in the local bodies, but it is not true that everything is well within the ruling alliance. In Bhandara-Gondia and Sangli-Satara constituencies, MVA candidates received more votes than our combined strength. This shows that ruling alliance voters supported our candidates."...