Mumbai: The neck-and-neck contest between the two Shiv Senas for the Mumbai North West seat, which the Eknath Shinde-led party’s Ravindra Waikar eventually won by 48 votes, is seeing a fresh twist.
The Mumbai Police have booked a relative of Waikar’s for allegedly taking a mobile phone inside a counting station. A Sunday report by Mid-Day suggested that the mobile phone that Mangesh Pandilkar — Waikar’s relative against whom the FIR has been registered — was using was connected to the Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs).
Giving a summary of the FIR registered in the case, the statement said, “At around 4 pm, in assembly constituency number 158, the (EC portal) Encore operator Dinesh Gurav illegally gave his mobile phone to Mangesh Pandilkar to use. That is why the said FIR has been filed.”
Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde) leader Sanjay Nirupam told ThePrint: “If EVM had been hacked, then Waikar couldn’t have won by such a small margin. The Opposition is making a big noise about this issue. Shiv Sena (UBT) is saying that the administration is responsible for Waikar’s win. Both candidates had the option of asking for recounting twice and they both used it.”
He added: “If the MVA candidate hadn’t gotten a recounting when he asked for it, then you could have said that the administration was biased, but that’s not the case. The rest is a matter of investigation into whose phone it is, why the phone was allowed. That is under investigation.”
Sharing the Mid-Day report, Aaditya Thackeray, former minister and MLA from the Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray), said in a post on social media platform X: “Once a traitor, always a traitor. The case of the mindhe gang candidate from North West Mumbai gets murkier as the gaddar (traitor) candidate indulges in treachery with democracy now.”
Once a traitor, always a traitor!
The case of the mindhe gang candidate from North West Mumbai gets murkier, as the gaddar candidate indulges in treachery with democracy now.
Surprisingly, or not, the Entirely Compromised- election commission, has refused to share CCTV footage… pic.twitter.com/hT27Bb2qDQ
— Aaditya Thackeray (@AUThackeray) June 16, 2024
The Shiv Sena (UBT) has been taunting Chief Minister Eknath Shinde as “Mindhe” — the Marathi word ‘mindha’ means someone who is suppressed with obligations — indirectly alleging that the Shinde faction is under the BJP’s control.
Waikar, once considered one of Uddhav Thackeray’s close aides, had stayed with the Shiv Sena (UBT) even after Shinde’s rebellion. He, however, defected to the Shinde-led Shiv Sena in March. The Jogeshwari MLA was under the scanner of the Mumbai Police’s Economic Offences Wing (EOW) and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in connection with the proposed construction of a luxury hotel in the city on a plot reserved by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) for a garden.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi also shared the Mid-Day report, remarking how this raises “serious concerns about transparency in our electoral process”. In his post, he also quoted Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s post calling for the elimination of EVMs, which has sparked a debate in India.
EVMs in India are a "black box," and nobody is allowed to scrutinize them.
Serious concerns are being raised about transparency in our electoral process.
Democracy ends up becoming a sham and prone to fraud when institutions lack accountability. https://t.co/nysn5S8DCF pic.twitter.com/7sdTWJXOAb
— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) June 16, 2024
At a press conference Sunday, Vandana Suryavanshi, EC official, Mumbai North West, said: “They are two different matters — counting of votes and unauthorised use of mobile phones at the counting centre. EVM hacking is impossible. To open an EVM, an OTP is not required as alleged. We have registered an FIR regarding unauthorised use of mobile phone. The police are investigating.”
Also Read: Electoral bonds, EVMs & call for ‘Quit BJP’ — when INDIA bloc came together at Mumbai’s Shivaji Park
‘Waikar’s relatives used phones in counting centre’
Bharat Shah, who contested from Mumbai North West as a candidate of the Hindu Samaj Party, told ThePrint that Waikar’s relatives were inside the counting centre with a mobile phone and were constantly corresponding with Waikar on 4 June.
According to Election Commission norms, electronic devices are not allowed inside counting centres.
“From 3 pm onwards, Waikar’s relatives were constantly in touch with him from within the counting centre. We caught Mangesh Pandilkar red-handed and took the case to the returning officer. She directed us to the police. We filed a complaint, but the police did not register an FIR based on our complaint. They registered an FIR much later and have named the tehsildar as the complainant and us as a witness,” Shah said.
Waikar had taken on Amol Kirtikar from the Shiv Sena (UBT). The contest was a close one. At one point of time, it seemed like Kirtikar was on the verge of winning by one vote. Sources from the Shiv Sena (UBT) say that the Shinde-led Shiv Sena asked for a recounting of the postal ballot votes, which led to Waikar’s victory by 48 votes.
Kirtikar did not respond to ThePrint’s calls and text message.
This is an updated version of the report.
(Edited by Gitanjali Das)