As counting for the local body polls has been deferred from December 2 to December 21, both ruling and Opposition parties have raised questions about the functioning of the State Election Commission (SEC). On Tuesday, the Nagpur bench of the Bombay High Court directed the SEC not to commence counting procedures on December 3 for the local body polls held a day before.
Three days ago, the SEC announced the deferment of polls to local bodies in some areas to December 20 due to legal issues. Immediately, a petition was filed mentioning that the announcement of results would have an impact on the polls that had been deferred to December 20. Convinced by the argument, the court directed the SEC to start counting after all poll processes are completed and at one go on December 21.
The last-minute changes in poll dates and now in counting have not gone down well with political parties. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis was at the lead in expressing displeasure. “I have been watching local polls for 25 years. I have never seen such polls where voting and, later, counting, were deferred,” the CM said.
Further, in a veiled attack, Fadnavis termed the development a failure of the system (SEC). “The commission has many more elections to conduct in the future. They [the SEC] should ensure lessons are learnt to avoid repeating such things,” the CM added.
Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) leaders Jayant Patil (NCP-SP) and senior Congress leader Balasaheb Thorat, too, joined the chorus. “In my entire political journey, I have never seen an Election Commission so confused and working under such pressure,” Thorat said.
Meanwhile, Patil suggested that the SEC should ensure complete security at the spots where electronic voting machines (EVMs) are stored. “In the past, people have raised doubts about EVM tampering. The SEC must make arrangements that leave no room for such comments,” said Patil, a former home minister of Maharashtra.”
Model code flouted?
On Tuesday, during municipal council and nagar panchayat polls, incidents such as the beating of people who had come to indulge in bogus voting, manhandling of party workers by rival groups, and clashes among workers of the ruling Mahayuti alliance were reported. But, one that was most discussed was the incident where Santosh Bangar, a Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde) MLA, reportedly violated the model code of conduct by raising slogans in support of his party and its leader inside a polling centre while voting was in progress. In the video, Bangar’s supporters are seen looking inside the polling enclosure. Election authorities have ordered an inquiry into the entire controversy, and even the chief minister has termed this an “inappropriate” act.
Minister’s reaction to Opposition’s allegations
Reacting to the situation, senior BJP leader and Mahayuti minister Girish Mahajan made a sarcastic remark. He said the postponement of counting has given the Opposition a chance to make allegations about EVM tampering. “I suggest that the Opposition ask its party workers to stay there and even sleep outside the places where EVMs are stored for safety. The MVA can even put their own locks on the rooms where EVMs are kept,” Mahajan said, attacking the Opposition for blaming the poll body and the system for its own alleged failures.
