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Leaders of Maharashtra’s Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA), joined hands with Raj Thackeray’s MNS in a massive rally in Mumbai to protest alleged irregularities in the voter lists.
Raj and Uddhav Thackeray at MVA protest march in Mumbai. (Photo: Shiv Sena)
The leaders of Maharashtra’s opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi, including Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Uddhav Thackeray and NCP (SP) head Sharad Pawar, were joined by Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) president Raj Thackeray in a massive protest march in Mumbai on Saturday against alleged irregularities in voter lists.
The ‘Satyacha Morcha’ (march for truth) started from Fashion Street in the southern part of the metropolis in the afternoon and culminated at the BMC headquarters, with Uddhav Thackeray, Raj Thackeray, Sharad Pawar and Congress leader Balasaheb Thorat taking part.
The rally drew thousands of supporters amid heavy police deployment and traffic curbs. Addressing the audience, Raj Thackeray accused the Election Commission of India (ECI) of holding the civic polls in haste without clearing the voter lists, citing instances of double voting in several constituencies.
“I have a list of 4,500 voters who voted in Malabar Hill constituency and they stay in Kalyan rural, Dombivali, Bhiwandi and Murbad constituencies. So it is clear that they voted twice. It is clear that there are lakhs of such voters in Maharashtra who have done double voting,” he said.
He said the updated voter list till July 2025 showed registration of double voters and asked why there was such a hurry on the Election Commission’s part to conduct the BMC elections if there were so many errors in the list.
Raj Thackeray also displayed a large pile of documents containing the voter lists with duplicate names, asserting the need to clean up the voter lists and make the democratic process more transparent.
“There are cases where several voters were registered at the address of the Pune municipal commissioner’s residence. Isn’t this an insult to voters who stand in long queues to cast their vote?” he asked.
“Whenever elections are held, work on the voter lists. Every face must be recognized. If any duplicate or fake voters appear, confront them on the spot — expose them right there — and hand them over to the police,” he added.
Addressing the rally, Uddhav Thackeray once again used his analogy of “anaconda” for the BJP and its allies, urging people to check their names on the voter lists carefully. He emphasised the unity of all MVA parties and criticised the “anaconda” for stealing his party, party symbol and the legacy of his father.
“We have found cases where voters were registered at the address of a public toilet. Imagine how many fake voters might be registered at your own address. Please check this on priority,” he said.
The UBT chief also cited an instance where a fake mobile number was registered for verification, using his name and address. He called it an attempt to remove his and his family’s name from the list. “We want elections to happen, but the way all this is happening is not good. If you are going to tamper with the process of elections then people have to decide whether they want elections or not.”
He also accused the ruling dispensation of “killing democracy” by tampering with the election process and urged people to teach them a lesson through the democratic process whenever they see any “vote chor”.
The Opposition had accused the ECI of turning a blind eye to the issue and had asserted that local body polls in Maharashtra should go ahead only after the shortcomings are rectified.
Earlier, Raj Thackeray was seen boarding a local train ahead of the MVA protest march. Addressing a gathering in Mumbai earlier this week, Thackeray had appealed to MNS workers to take public transport to reach the venue.
BJP’s Silent Protest
Meanwhile, the Maharashtra BJP held a ‘silent protest’ on Saturday to counter the MVA’s ‘Satyacha Morcha’, claiming the Opposition was attempting to “spread fake narrative” ahead of the civic polls.
Leaders and workers of the saffron party sporting black tapes across their mouths staged their agitation in the Girgaon area of south Mumbai. Maharashtra BJP president Ravindra Chavan said that the protest aims to expose the MVA’s alleged attempts to spread fake narratives ahead of elections.
“MVA leaders have consistently tried to mislead people before every election. Similar attempts were made ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha polls when they deliberately spread false claims about amendments to the Constitution,” he said.
(with inputs from PTI)
Aveek Banerjee is a Senior Sub Editor at News18. Based in Noida with a Master’s in Global Studies, Aveek has more than three years of experience in digital media and news curation, specialising in international…Read More
Aveek Banerjee is a Senior Sub Editor at News18. Based in Noida with a Master’s in Global Studies, Aveek has more than three years of experience in digital media and news curation, specialising in international… Read More
November 01, 2025, 16:24 IST
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