Amid growing internal friction within Maharashtra's ruling Mahayuti alliance, State Transport Minister Pratap Sarnaik has leveled serious allegations against coalition partner Bharatiya Janata Party regarding the recent municipal corporation elections in Mira-Bhayandar. Sarnaik claimed that the ruling BJP gained an unfair electoral advantage due to large-scale discrepancies and bogus entries in the local voter rolls. The political row erupted following the official publication of revised electorate data by election authorities.
Special Intensive Revision Discloses Massive Voter List Discrepancies
In accordance with directives issued by the Election Commission of India, draft voter rolls prepared under the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) campaign were published across Maharashtra on August 31. The figures released for Assembly Constituency 145 (Mira-Bhayandar) and Assembly Constituency 146 (Owala-Majiwada) revealed substantial gaps requiring official verification.
According to the SIR dataset, Assembly Constituency 145 records a total of 5,14,950 voters, out of which 3,01,905 voter records are available, while 2,13,045 records require thorough verification. Similarly, Assembly Constituency 146 has 2,92,537 registered voters, with 1,48,418 verified records and 1,42,661 records flagged for pending verification. Minister Sarnaik highlighted that these unverified entries comprise deceased citizens, voters who have permanently relocated, and duplicate entries recorded across multiple wards.
Administrative Inaction and Electoral Outcome Analysis
Addressing the civic poll outcome, Transport Minister Pratap Sarnaik stated that he had formally alerted the municipal commissioner about the presence of bogus voter entries prior to the elections. However, he alleged that the local administration ignored these warnings, allowing unverified entries to influence the final mandate despite public sentiment siding with Shiv Sena.
Sarnaik acknowledged that BJP executed voter management at the booth level more effectively than Shiv Sena cadres, who failed to monitor roll discrepancies adequately. He noted that while party workers missed identifying these discrepancies during the campaign, the leadership has moved past the electoral setback to focus on preparations for upcoming legislative contests.
Strained Relations Within the Mahayuti Coalition
The public accusation by a senior Shiv Sena minister against the BJP has intensified political friction within the local units of the Mahayuti alliance in Thane district. The row comes at a sensitive juncture for the state administration.
Adding to the political speculation, reports have surfaced regarding dissatisfaction within the alliance after Shiv Sena chief and Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde skipped a recent cabinet meeting. Shinde's subsequent visit to Delhi has fueled intense political chatter, while Sarnaik's allegations of electoral roll manipulation further accentuate the rift between the coalition partners.
