- Thackeray cousins claimed that pens are being used for marking fingers after voting in civic polls
- Raj Thackeray alleged that ink mark on the finger can be easily "wiped off with sanitiser"
- Poll body, however, rejected the charge, and said it was "not possible"
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray on Thursday claimed that marker pens are being used by officials to mark fingers after voting in Mumbai civic polls. Speaking to reporters after voting for elections to the 227-ward Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) in Mumbai, he alleged that the ink mark on the finger can be easily "wiped off with sanitiser".
The State Election Commission, however, rejected the charge.
"Now, the only option left is to apply the ink, go outside, wipe it off, and then go back inside and vote again," Thackeray, who cast his vote accompanied by his family members, said.
"They (the government) don't want the Opposition parties. The entire administration is being run by the government (to win the polls). This is not the sign of a healthy democracy. There is a limit to misuse of power," he said.
Thackeray also targeted the State Election Commission over the use of the Printing Auxiliary Display Unit (PADU) in the civic polls.
PADU is being used in the BMC polls for the first time to facilitate vote counting in the event of technical glitches in electronic voting machines (EVMs). They will act as backup units, BMC Commissioner Bhushan Gagrani had said, adding that these, like the other EVM units, will remain with Returning Officers and will be used only in case of emergency.
Thackeray alleged that the poll body did not even bother to give any clarification on the use of PADU and extended the canvassing time to allow distribution of money (by ruling parties).
He also asked MNS workers to stay alert against any malpractices by rival parties in the polls, which are being held in the city for the first time since 2017.
Raj Thackeray's cousin and Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray also flagged the issue.
After voting with his family members, he said he has been getting calls since morning that the indelible inks are getting removed. He also said that people are complaining about their names missing from the voters' list.
Poll Body's Response
The State Election Commission said it was "not possible" for a voter to cast the vote again by wiping off the ink.
"Creating confusion among voters by attempting to wipe off the ink from their finger is a wrongful act," the poll body said.
It also warned that strict action will be taken if a voter is found voting after wiping off the ink.
The commission also clarified that the marker pens have been in use since 2011.
Maharashtra Chief Minister and BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis also rejected Thackerays' charges.
"I have also been marked with a marker. Is it erasing?" he asked reporters in Nagpur while trying to wipe off the ink.
"The Election Commission should look into this issue and use something else; they can use oil paint if they want," he quipped.
The Thackeray cousins, who parted ways in 2005, formed an alliance last month for the BMC polls, aiming to control Asia's richest civic body. The cousins have placed the cause of the "Marathi manoos" and Marathi pride at the centre of their campaign.
BMC Elections
The voting for BMC elections began at 7:30 this morning. A total of 10,231 polling stations have been set up across Mumbai, and 64,375 officers and staff have been deployed for duty. The voting will continue till 5:30 pm.
For the first time, the civic body has introduced a geo-fencing and live vehicle tracking system to monitor the movement of vehicles deployed for election duty.
As many as 2,865 vehicles, including 1,023 buses from the civic undertaking BEST, 101 from the state transport corporation, 1,160 from private owners, and 581 taxis, are being tracked through a central control room at the civic headquarters in south Mumbai.
In BMC, whose annual budget is over Rs 74,400 crore, 1,700 candidates are vying for 227 seats in the elections.
The last elections for Mumbai were held in February 2017. Their five-year terms ended in 2022, but the elections were repeatedly postponed due to the OBC reservation controversy, ward delimitation issues, and the COVID-19 pandemic. For the past four years, the BMC was run by government-appointed administrators.
Besides Mumbai, voting is currently underway in the following municipal corporations: Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Navi Mumbai, Vasai-Virar, Kalyan-Dombivli, Kolhapur, Nagpur, Solapur, Amravati, Akola, Nashik, Pimpri-Chinchwad, Pune, Ulhasnagar, Thane, Chandrapur, Parbhani, Mira-Bhayandar, Nanded-Waghala, Panvel, Bhiwandi-Nizampur, Latur, Malegaon, Sangli-Miraj-Kupwad, Jalgaon, Ahilyanagar, Dhule, Jalna and Ichalkaranji.
The votes will be counted on January 16.
