The Wadi Nagar Parishad election on Tuesday saw controversy after two incidents of bogus voting were reported from Prabhag 5 and Prabhag 12. Following voter complaints, officials halted the use of EVMs in these booths and shifted to paper ballots. Despite the disruption, the overall polling process remained peaceful, recording a 53.33% turnout, with 31,749 voters—16,370 men and 15,379 women—casting their votes.
Technical problems added to the tension when the EVM at the Shiladevi Public School booth in Prabhag 7 stopped functioning for nearly 90 minutes, halting voting. To make up for the delay, polling was extended until 7 pm. Amid these issues, elderly voters such as 99-year-old Dashrath Bhaduji Thakre and 98-year-old Rukminibai Kumkumwar inspired many by turning up to vote. Other than minor technical glitches in several wards, polling concluded smoothly.
However, in Saoner, the municipal election was dominated by severe voter-list errors, leaving many citizens distressed. Numerous residents found that their names were listed in completely different wards, forcing families to vote at multiple locations. For example, Jeevan Vijaykumar Patrikar, a resident of Prabhag 2, had to vote in Prabhag 4; his wife Kanchan was assigned to Prabhag 8; and their son to Prabhag 7. Many others faced similar chaos.
In another case, Mahadev Patil and his young son were missing from the voter list entirely, while his wife voted in Prabhag 10 and his daughter in Prabhag 8. Voters complained that polling numbers were unclear and the voter list was riddled with mistakes, causing confusion and raising serious concerns about the preparedness of election authorities in Wadi and Saoner.
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