MNS candidate received just 2 votes? BMC reacts

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) on Tuesday clarified that the MNS candidate from Dahisar assembly constituency in the city received 53 votes in one of the polling centres and not two, as claimed by him.

IMAGE: MNS chief Raj Thackeray addresses a rally ahead of Maharashtra assembly elections in Mumbai. Photograph: ANI Photo

In a post of X, the civic body refuted losing candidate Rajesh Yerunkar's allegations of EVM manipulation.

In a viral video, Yerunkar alleged a mismatch in the polling data and EVM numbers. He received only two votes at the polling centre where four members of his family voted, he said, questioning the count.

Manisha Chaudhary of the BJP won from the constituency, getting 98,587 votes, defeating her nearest rival Vinod Ghosalkar while Yerunkar, in the third place, received 5,456 votes.

"There is no factual basis to the allegations," said the civic body in its statement.

Notably, BMC commissioner and administrator Bhushan Gagrani was the district election officer for Mumbai city and Mumbai suburbs during the November 20 elections.

As per the form 17-C, which records the detailed vote count for each candidate, Yerunkar received 53 votes at the particular centre, the BMC said, adding, "there is no truth to the complaint that the candidate got only two votes there."

Information in the form 17C and EVM voting data also matched and no written complaints were received by the Dahisar Election Officer's office, it said.

As to Yerunkar's allegation that the EVM battery showed 99 per cent charged status even after polling, the BMC cited the FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) issued by the Election Commission of India which explain that the voltage of an EVM power pack falls very gradually when the battery storage is high but falls rapidly when the storage goes below a threshold.

"In case of lighter current load like with a single Ballot Unit and less than 1000 votes being cast, the battery current drain is low and output voltage may not drop below 7.4V and can thus display 99% capacity," the BMC post said.

The Raj Thackeray-led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) did not win a single seat in the 288-member assembly while the ruling Mahayuti swept the elections, winning 230 seats.