Mumbai, Oct 9 (SocialNews.XYZ) Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray on Friday intensified his criticism of the Election Commission of India (ECI), alleging irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process and demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar.
Joining the allegations raised by Opposition parties during protests in New Delhi, Aaditya Thackeray addressed a press conference and pointed to what he described as statistical discrepancies in voter records.
Addressing the media, he questioned allegedly missing voter records and cited specific figures to support his claims.
"I am exposing the first major manipulation by 'Golmaal Gyanu' [referring to the Chief Election Commissioner]. There is a discrepancy of 7.9 lakh voters in Maharashtra. The Election Commission released one set of figures in May and a completely different set in August. 'Golmaal Gyanu' must answer where these voters went. They need to clarify the sudden disappearance of five lakh voters in the state," he said.
He further pointed to alleged irregularities in specific constituencies, claiming that in the Bhiwandi constituency, voter records did not tally with figures associated with the SIR process.
Highlighting another instance from the Mahim constituency, Thackeray said that long-time voters listed in the 2002 electoral rolls and draft voter lists were now receiving notices.
"People who have been voting consistently since 2002 are receiving notices despite being on the draft rolls. What kind of system is this?" he asked.
Thackeray also raised concerns about field-level voter verification.
He alleged that Booth Level Officers (BLOs) were not conducting proper door-to-door verification in some areas and were instead calling residents to complete documentation.
He further said that the issue would be taken up publicly and reiterated his demand for the removal of the CEC. He also alleged that youths travelling from states such as Goa and Rajasthan were being detained while heading to protest venues.
Expressing confidence about future political developments, he said the present government would face challenges before the 2029 general elections.
The political developments coincided with protests in different parts of the country.
In Maharashtra, Pune witnessed demonstrations by Maharashtra Public Service Commission (MPSC) aspirants, while in New Delhi, the Congress staged protests demanding the CEC's resignation.
To maintain law and order, authorities in the national capital deployed additional security personnel and imposed restrictions at several locations.
Commenting on the security measures in Delhi, Thackeray alleged that an "undeclared Emergency" was prevailing in the country and claimed that people were being detained and served notices.
He confirmed Shiv Sena (UBT)'s support for the demonstrations in Delhi and said party leader Sanjay Raut was participating in the agitation.
Referring to the protests by students in Pune, Thackeray criticised the Maharashtra government's handling of paper leak cases and questioned why action had not been taken against certain officials.
He also referred to the ongoing legal proceedings concerning the Shiv Sena name and symbol, expressing hope that the matter would ultimately result in a fair outcome.
Source: IANS
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