Maharashtra political parties on Friday presented several demands to Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar, including conducting polling in a single phase rather than multiple phases, increasing campaign expenditure limits, taking immediate action against those spreading fake news on social media, and improving facilities for voters at polling stations.
The Election Commission of India (ECI) team is currently in Mumbai to meet with various stakeholders and assess preparations for the upcoming Maharashtra Legislative Assembly election. The Shiv Sena UBT delegation, including veteran leader Subhash Desai and party MP Anil Desai, urged the ECI to conduct the polling in a single phase rather than multiple phases, referencing past instances to support their plea.
The duo insisted that election duty staff should effectively manage voter queues to ensure timely voting. They also emphasized the need for staff training in time management if the ECI aims for a voter turnout of 60 percent or more.
The Shiv Sena delegation, led by former MP Rahul Shewale, advocated for single-phase voting and called for various amenities to be provided at polling stations to enhance voter turnout and ensure a smooth polling process.
A delegation from the NCP SP, led by party general secretary Ravindra Pawar, urged the ECI to raise the current expenditure limit of ₹40 lakh per candidate. Notably, a delegation from the Ajit Pawar faction, including minister Anil Patil and general secretary Shivajirao Garje, made similar demand.
Both NCP factions argued that the rise in expenses is also required as the candidates have to spend Rs 10 to 15 lakh in releasing the commercial advertisement for giving details with regard to criminal cases.
They pointed out that it would not be possible for a candidate to contest the election in a balance of Rs 25 lakh and therefore reiterated that an increase in polling expenditure is necessary.
Both factions also made a case for ECI to take immediate action against those spreading fake news on social media.
Mumbai BJP chief Ashish Shelar demanded that the polling day should not fall on consecutive holidays and if the polling will be held in November considering the hot weather during the Lok Sabha elections the voters standing in long queues should be provided facilities such as sheds, fans and drinking water.
Shelar said that as per the ECI rules the voters are prohibited from carrying mobile phones and bags. However, he pointed out that due to this condition some people avoid going to the polling stations to cast their votes.
Therefore, he demanded that a token facility be provided to the voters at the polling stations to keep their mobiles and bags at a given place till they exercise their voting rights.
He further demanded that the ECI should carve out a booth to accommodate a smaller number of voters than its present norm of 1,500 voters. He said this is needed to avoid crowding at the polling stations.
The Congress opposed the ECI’s move to open polling stations in cooperative societies saying that it may lead to bogus voting. The Congress delegation comprising general secretary Munaf Hakim and senior leader Gajanan Desai also pressed for the removal of the state Director General of Police Rashmi Shukla from her post to safeguard the democratic process and ensure that the forthcoming elections are conducted in a fair, free, and transparent manner.
Further, the Congress also demanded that the state government staff from the level of clerks up to senior officers working in the same posts for many years should be immediately transferred for free and fair election.