96 lakh 'fake' voters in Maharashtra: Raj Thackeray; demands clean-up before local polls
Mumbai (PTI): MNS chief Raj Thackeray on Sunday alleged that 96 lakh fake voters have been added to Maharashtra's electoral rolls and challenged the Election Commission, asking how it will hold the local body polls without cleaning up the voters' list.
Addressing booth-level agents of the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS), Thackeray said if polls are held by rigging the voters' list, then it is the biggest insult to electors. He urged his party workers to verify the voters' list to find out fake voters.
Various Opposition parties, including the Shiv Sena (UBT), Congress, NCP (SP) and MNS, recently met the State Election Commissioner and Chief Electoral Officer, while claiming that there are duplicate names in the electoral rolls across different addresses and assembly segments.
The Opposition has called for “rectification” in the electoral rolls and removal of “anomalies” ahead of the rural and urban body elections, which are to be completed by January 31, 2026.
The Maharashtra State Election Commission on Saturday said that no political party can tamper with the electoral rolls and that corrections and updates on the voter lists are being managed securely.
Raj Thackeray on Sunday alleged, "An attempt is being made to finish regional parties. I have learnt that 96 lakh fake voters have been enrolled in the voters' list in Maharashtra for the upcoming polls. They had also done this during the state polls as well."
He claimed that 8 to 10 lakh fake voters have been added in Mumbai and 8 to 8.5 lakh in Thane, Pune and Nashik.
"They have done it in every village and city. Will polls take place like this in the country? If polls are held like this, then it is an insult to voters in Maharashtra and the country," he said.
Thackeray said the ruling parties are upset when the Opposition hits out at the Election Commission because that hurts them.
"The Election Commission should show how it conducts the local body polls before cleaning up the electoral rolls. If polls have to be held peacefully, then clean the voters' list first," he warned.
Without naming the ruling BJP, Thackeray said it wants to face the polls by putting fake electors in the voters' list.
"It does not matter whether you cast a vote or not. The match has been fixed. What kind of democracy is this?" he asked.
Hitting out at those who scorned him for poor electoral performances, Thackeray said how will his party have MLAs and MPs if the voting arithmetic itself is "compromised".
Thackeray's party drew a blank in the state polls last year.
He said everyone knows how the ruling party won the 2024 assembly polls in Maharashtra.
When the BJP was in the Opposition, it used to make the same charges against the poll body, Thackeray said.
He also claimed that the operations of Mumbai airport will soon be shifted to the Navi Mumbai airport.
In some days, even the cargo will be shifted to the Vadhavan Port (coming up in neighbouring Palghar district) and land around the Navi Mumbai Airport and port will be given to the Adani group, Thackeray further claimed.
"I will not tolerate development built over the tomb of Marathi people," he said.
Thackeray also claimed that it was India's first Home Minister Vallabhbhai Patel, who first opposed the merging of Mumbai with Maharashtra.
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Veteran Congress leader Shamanuru Shivashankarappa laid to rest with full state honours
Bengaluru (PTI): Veteran Congress leader Shamanuru Shivashankarappa was laid to rest with full state honours on Monday.
The 94-year-old former minister, who passed away at a private hospital in Bengaluru on Sunday, was cremated at the Kalleshwara Mill premises, following Veerashaiva-Lingayat traditions.
Earlier in the day, Shivashankarappa's mortal remains were brought to his native Davanagere, where they were kept at the high school grounds for the public, his followers, and well-wishers to pay their last respects.
ALSO READ: Karnataka Speaker U T Khader condoles death of Shamanur Shivashankarappa
Expressing deep sorrow over his demise, the Karnataka government ordered that his last rites be performed with full state honours.
Both the Karnataka Legislative Assembly and Council also mourned his passing, adjourning their sessions for the day after paying tributes.
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, Deputy CM D K Shivakumar, AICC President Mallikarjun Kharge, veteran BJP leader B S Yediyurappa, several ministers, opposition leaders, legislators, and political figures paid their respects.
A number of seers from the Veerashaiva-Lingayat community also attended the last rites.
Shivashankarappa represented the Davanagere South Assembly constituency. He had been undergoing treatment at the hospital for some time before succumbing to age-related ailments.
The senior-most legislator in Karnataka, Shivashankarappa, was also one of the longest-serving lawmakers in the country, sources said.
He is survived by three sons, including S S Mallikarjun, the Karnataka Minister for Mines, Geology, and Horticulture, and four daughters. His daughter-in-law, Prabha Mallikarjun, is the Member of Parliament from Davanagere.
A six-time MLA, Shivashankarappa also served as a minister and an MP.
He was a prominent educationist, establishing several educational institutions, and was an industrialist.
Additionally, he served as the treasurer of the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) for decades and was the president of the All India Veerashaiva Mahasabha, the apex body of the influential Veerashaiva-Lingayat community.
