Maharashtra: MVA alleges huge tinkering in voters' lists; complains to ECI, state CEO

Mumbai: The Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) here on Friday alleged massive manipulations in the voters' lists for the upcoming Maharashtra Assembly elections of November 20 and shot off complaints to the Election Commission of India (ECI) and state Chief Electoral Officer (CEO).

Top leaders of the Congress Nana Patole, Leader of Opposition in Assembly Vijay Wadettiwar and M. Arif Naseem Khan, Nationalist Congress Party (SP)'s Jitendra Awhad, Shiv Sena (UBT)'s Ambadas Danve and Anil Desai, and others called on the CEO S. Chockalingam.

The MVA and SS (UBT)’s Leader of Opposition in Council have also shot off separate letters to the CEO and ECI on the purported irregularities allegedly being perpetrated at the behest of the ruling MahaYuti, while pointing fingers at Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis.

Speaking to the media, Patole said that there is a blatant misuse of the online Form No. 7 through which big chunks of names are being deleted/omitted from the voter lists, mostly the supporters of the MVA parties, as the MahaYuti is feeling rattled before the elections.

Awhad said that there is a conspiracy to remove at least 5,000 names from the voter lists in all the 288 Assembly constituencies in the state with the intention of benefitting the ruling allies Shiv Sena-Bharatiya Janata Party-Nationalist Congress Party.

"Voters who are alive are shown as dead. Names and photos of voters don’t match. Five people from a single household are shown in different constituencies. The printing of the electoral rolls is of very poor quality, with many errors, even though the government makes tall claims of digital India," slammed Awhad.

Wadettiwar claimed that the government is trying to chuck out at least 10,000 names of voters in all the constituencies where the MVA allies are in a dominant position, so that the MahaYuti candidates can sail to an easy victory.

Desai and Danve said that even the initiative facilitating elderly citizens above 85 years ago to vote from home is fraught with huge irregularities, especially when Mumbai has over 4,500 such voters in each constituency, and elsewhere in the state the figure is more than 6,000 per constituency, raising doubts on transparency and fair-plan.

Wadettiwar and Danve raised the issue of various new schemes announced hurriedly by the MahaYuti regime, 50,000 brand ambassadors appointed for Rs 50,000 honorarium who only promoted the BJP at public expenses and demanded an immediate halt to it.

Patole pointed out that the extension granted to the Director-General of Police Rashmi Shukla and her appointment were illegal, and she must be removed but the ECI refused to touch her. "Are there separate laws for West Bengal and Maharashtra?" he questioned.

All MVA leaders demanded an immediate ban on Form 7 which is being grossly misused to ensure an advantage to the BJP-MahaYuti which are on a slide in the election race.

The Opposition also spoke about cancelling a series of GRs (Government Resolutions) issued just before the elections, appointments/transfers, awarding tenders, naming brand ambassadors for various government schemes, etc. and a probe into the manipulation of voter lists.