MUMBAI: In the third phase of the local body polls, 12 district councils and 125 panchayat samitis or rural local bodies reported a 52% voter turnout till 3.30 pm on Saturday. The voting percentage is expected to be around 68% when the final figures are released by the State Election Commission on Sunday. The voting witnessed EVM glitches in some parts of the state along with political clashes and violations of the code of conduct by politicians in three different areas.
Although there were no reported major law-and-order issues or disputes over voting, a controversy erupted over an alleged audio clip of the Shiv Sena’s Paranda MLA Tanaji Sawant alleging that voters were bribed with money in Dharashiv district. The opposition claimed that the voice in the audio clip was Sawant’s but the district administration said it had not received any complaint regarding the violation.
A minor dispute was reported in Karad tehsil of Satara district where NCP and BJP workers clashed over alleged bogus voting. However, the police intervened and controlled the situation.
Another controversy surfaced with regard to children being taken inside polling stations in Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar and Solapur. In Sambhaji Nagar, the Shiv Sena’s Paithan MLA Vilas Bhumare took his minor son with him into a polling station in Pachola. At the MLA’s request, election officials even reportedly applied indelible ink on his son’s finger. The other case happened at the Yashwant Nagar polling station in Akluj tehsil with zilla parishad candidate Arjun Singh Mohite Patil. Allegations were made that Mohite Patil’s son even pressed the EVM button. Mohite Patil later said that he had taken him along because the child wanted to see how his mother and father voted.
The State Election Commission (SEC) took serious note of minors being allowed into polling stations and ordered an inquiry. “We have directed the district collectors, who are in charge of the elections, to take action against the people and officials responsible for these incidents and also submit a report,” an SEC official said.
There were also instances of villagers boycotting the polls in Marathwada and western Maharashtra. In Marathwada, two villages, Bothgaon and Bothgaon Tanda in Parbhani district, stayed away in order to protest against bad roads in the village and the lack of a bridge over a river, which they had been demanding for a while to no avail. According to information, no voting was done till 3.30 pm.
In another boycott in Balgavade village in Sangli district, villagers stayed away to protest against the cutting of thousands of trees on grazing land in the village for a solar power plant installation.
Technical glitches in EVMs in some areas like Chiplun in Ratnagiri and in Ahilyanagar delayed the voting process on Saturday morning. Voting happened only after the EVMs were replaced. “We keep 10% reserved voting machines, and the voting resumed after the replacement of the machines,” said an SEC official.
Voting was held for 731 seats in the 12 zilla parishads of Raigad, Ratnagiri, Sindhudurg, Pune, Satara, Sangli, Kolhapur, Solapur, Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar, Parbhani, Dharashiv and Latur. Voting was also held for 1,462 seats in the 125 panchayat samitis across the state. A total of 7,438 candidates contested and 29.8 million voters will decide their fate. The counting of votes will happen on Monday.