aaditya-thackeray-questions-evm-role-in-maha-polls

Aaditya Thackeray, leader of the Shiv Sena (UBT) and re-elected MLA from the Worli Assembly constituency, expressed concerns about the Maharashtra Assembly election results, questioning whether they reflected the people's mandate or possible tampering of electronic voting machines (EVMs).

 

Thackeray retained his seat, defeating Shiv Sena candidate Milind Deora by a margin of 8,801 votes.

 

After receiving his winning certificate, Aaditya called the outcome of the polls "surprising." He noted that despite strong public engagement in previous elections, the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) failed to deliver comparable results.

 

Highlighting the performance gap, he stated, "We got a good response in the same state in the Lok Sabha election. One element is that we do not know if the people of Maharashtra voted or the EVMs."

 

The election results marked a decisive victory for the NDA in Maharashtra, with the Mahayuti coalition making significant gains. However, the opposition's scepticism grew as the Shiv Sena (UBT), led by Uddhav Thackeray, managed to win only 13 seats while leading in seven more.

 

Earlier in the day, Sanjay Raut, a senior Shiv Sena (UBT) leader, cast doubt on the trends as votes were being counted. Raut accused the Mahayuti of "stealing seats," emphasising the disproportionate results in comparison to the opposition’s campaign strength.

 

Adding to the criticism was Fahad Ahmad, an NCP (SP) candidate from the Anushakti Nagar constituency. Ahmad, known for his activism and being the husband of actor Swara Bhasker, raised technical concerns about the EVMs.

 

Early trends had shown him leading over his opponent, Sana Malik, daughter of veteran leader Nawab Malik. However, as the final rounds of counting progressed, Sana Malik gained the lead, ultimately defeating Ahmad by 3,378 votes.

 

Ahmad questioned the battery levels of the EVMs, pointing out an unusual trend. He claimed that Malik led in rounds where EVMs had 99 percent battery and trailed those with lower battery levels. This discrepancy, he argued, required further investigation.