A group of villagers in Markadwadi, Maharashtra, wanted to hold a new election using paper ballots after the recent assembly polls. However, they decided to abandon their plans after police warned them about possible legal trouble.
The villagers believed their winning candidate, Uttam Jankar of the NCP (SP), didn’t get enough votes in their village. During the voting, Jankar received only 843 votes compared to his rival, BJP’s Ram Satpute, who got 1,003 votes. This made the villagers suspicious of the Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs).
To prevent any conflicts, local officials banned voting from December 2 to 5. When the villagers tried to prepare for the new voting, police arrived and warned them that even casting one vote could lead to serious consequences. Jankar met with police and villagers to discuss the situation. After hearing the police’s warning that they would confiscate materials for the polling, the villagers decided to cancel the voting.
Despite this setback, Jankar and the villagers plan to continue their fight for fairness by taking their concerns to the Election Commission and the courts. One villager reported that of the 2,000 eligible voters, about 1,900 voted, but they are worried that the EVM results are not accurate.
In the recent Maharashtra elections, the majority party, Mahayuti, won 230 out of 288 seats, while Jankar’s NCP (SP) got 41 seats and the opposition managed only 46 seats.
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