Maharashtra elections: Five INDIA candidates move Bombay High Court against Mahayuti victories
Mumbai: Following their defeat in the Maharashtra assembly elections, five candidates from parties under the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) have filed petitions before the Bombay High Court, challenging the victories of rival Mahayuti candidates.
The candidates who have approached the court are Manohar Krishna Madhavi, Prashant Sudam Jagtap, Mahesh Kothe, Naresh Ratan Manera, and Sunil Chandrakant Bhusara. They are seeking the annulment of the election results in their contested constituencies, as reported by Bar and Bench on Wednesday.
The petitioners have alleged misconduct in the elections, including duplicate voting, concealed criminal cases, asset concealment, EVM malfunctions, bribery, and a lack of transparency in the election process, the report mentioned.
Madhavi, a Shiv Sena (UBT) candidate from Airoli, lost to BJP's Ganesh Chandra Naik. In his petition, Madhavi alleges that Naik and the Election Commission allowed duplicate voting entries and misused the electoral system by letting people vote multiple times during the elections.
Jagtap, a Nationalist Congress Party (SP) leader, who contested from Hadapsar has challenged the election win of Chetan Vitthal Tupe, an NCP candidate from the Ajit Pawar faction. In his petition, Jagtap claims that Tupe hid his criminal cases and failed to disclose his income details, violating Section 125A of the Representation of People Act, 1951.
Kothe, another NCP (SP) candidate from Solapur North, has contested the election result where BJP's Vijaykumar Deshmukh emerged victorious. His petition claims that Deshmukh violated election rules as he concealed immovable properties and other assets. The petition also argues that the returning officer improperly accepted the nominations.
Manera, a Shiv Sena (UBT) candidate from Ovala-Majiwda, has challenged the election win of Pratap Baburao Sarnaik, an NCP (AP) MLA and current transport minister in the Devendra Fadnavis-led government. The petition claims issues with the EVM-VVPAT system at one polling booth, which allegedly helped Sarnaik win. It also criticises the overall conduct of the election process.
Bhusara, a NCP (SP) candidate from Vikramgad constituency, has contested the victory of BJP's Harishchandra Sakharam Bhoye. According to Bhasura's plea, Bhoye used corrupt practices, including bribery to win, undermining the Representation of People Act. Additionally, the petition claims that there was a refusal to provide Form 17-C and CCTV footage reducing transparency in the election process.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Bengaluru jail introduces biometric tracking system for prisoners
Bengaluru: In a bid to curb misconduct and illegal activities inside Parappana Agrahara Central Prison, prison authorities have introduced a new ‘Prisoners Tracking Movement System’ under which inmates will have to undergo biometric verification while entering every barrack.
According to jail officials, biometric systems have been installed across all major sections of the prison, including barracks, visitor rooms, hospital, canteen, kitchen, library, playground, handicraft units and bakery sections. Staff members have also been deployed at these locations.
Officials said inmates visiting the visitors’ room must now obtain a digital token after biometric verification. Details such as the prisoner’s name, identification number and entry time will be updated in the prison software system. This will help authorities maintain a complete digital record of inmates visiting and returning from meeting rooms.
Similar systems have also been introduced at entry points of the hospital, library and other barracks accessed for work-related purposes. Officials said the system will help identify prisoners involved in suspicious or illegal activities with other inmates and enable authorities to track how much time a prisoner spends at different locations inside the prison.
Authorities stated that AI-powered cameras were already being used inside the prison to monitor inmates as well as prison staff. Along with this, digital tracking of prisoner phone calls and a digital token system for visitor meetings have now been added to strengthen surveillance over inmate movement. Officials said the project has been implemented at a cost of around Rs 2.25 crore.
The prison department has also introduced a canteen usage tracking system to monitor prisoners’ spending patterns. Instead of direct cash payments, inmates can purchase bakery items and snacks using wallets or coupons issued within the prison system.
Officials said the digital system will record details including the buyer’s name, items purchased, quantity, date, time and remaining wallet balance. This will allow prison authorities to maintain complete expenditure records of inmates.
