Congress leader Varsha Gaikwad on Friday accused authorities of alleged serious irregularities in the draft voters’ list released for the upcoming Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections, alleging that nearly 11 lakh duplicate names have been included, reported the PTI.
Mumbai Congress president Varsha Gaikwad, who led a party delegation to meet the State Election Commissioner (SEC), demanded an immediate explanation for the discrepancies. Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Varsha Gaikwad said that even district collectors and civic deputy commissioners were unable to clarify why duplicate names existed or how they would be corrected, according to the PTI.
“Officials are now saying affidavits may be required from duplicate voters. This will only create further confusion and could reduce voter turnout. Citizens are being unnecessarily harassed. The draft list has been published without proper coordination between the SEC and the BMC administration,” she said, the news agency reported.
Gaikwad added that there had been no ward restructuring for the past nine years and no voter list had been published since October 2024. She claimed that between 7,000 and 9,000 names had been shifted from one ward to another in areas such as Dharavi, Andheri and Kandivali, with neither the SEC nor the civic body offering clarity on their responsibilities, as per the PTI.
She further demanded that the SEC publish a list of duplicate voters and specify the wards in which each duplicate entry has been recorded.
According to Gaikwad, the SEC has issued certain directions to the BMC, which must now be implemented without delay. Friday’s meeting was attended by SEC officials, the BMC commissioner, additional and deputy commissioners, and representatives of the Mumbai Congress, reported the PTI.
Meanwhile, Congress leader Vijay Wadettiwar on Friday accused the BJP-led Maharashtra government of misleading the public by giving what he called a “false assurance” of securing a 27 per cent reservation for Other Backward Classes (OBCs) in local body elections. His remarks came after the Supreme Court said earlier in the day that the results of the upcoming polls would be subject to its final decision on the matter.
The Supreme Court allowed the state government and the State Election Commission to proceed with the elections. However, it clarified that the results of local bodies where the overall reservation exceeds the 50 per cent cap will depend on its final judgement in petitions relating to OBC quota.
Speaking in Chandrapur, Wadettiwar said the interim order did not halt the election process, which offered temporary relief. “But the results of OBC-reserved seats will depend on the final verdict. This means the uncertainty over OBC reservation still remains,” the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) leader said.
(with PTI inputs)
