With municipal elections announced for 29 civic bodies, including Mumbai, voting is scheduled to take place on January 15, followed by counting on January 16. However, the elections have already stirred controversy even before a single vote has been cast.
According to claims, as many as 66 candidates from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Shiv Sena have been elected unopposed across various parts of Maharashtra. These victories were declared before polling day, triggering sharp criticism from the Shiv Sena (Thackeray faction). Party MP Sanjay Raut strongly questioned the legitimacy of calling this a “successful electoral process.”
“What kind of election is this if 66 candidates are elected unopposed? What are voters supposed to do?” Raut asked, expressing serious concern over the democratic process.
Raut said that such a large number of unopposed victories is unprecedented, not just in India but globally. He questioned the merit behind these candidates being elected without contest.
“What extraordinary achievement do they have that people chose them unopposed?” he asked. Drawing comparisons, Raut pointed out that towering national leaders such as Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Nath Pai, Vasantdada Patil, Ram Manohar Lohia, and even Prime Minister Narendra Modi were never elected unopposed.
Alleging a disturbing new trend in Maharashtra politics, Raut claimed that opposition candidates were being forced to withdraw from the race. He accused the ruling alliance of using money power, alleging that candidates were offered sums ranging from ₹5 crore to ₹10 crore to step aside. Referring to MNS leader Manoj Gharat, Raut said the figures involved were “eye-popping” and claimed that bags filled with crores of rupees were distributed to candidates in Jalgaon.
Raut also leveled serious allegations against the Election Commission, claiming that it ignored its own rules under political pressure. He alleged that despite a 3 pm deadline for withdrawal of nominations, officials were instructed, allegedly from the Chief Minister’s and Deputy Chief Minister’s offices to accept withdrawals even after the deadline and record them as timely.
“I even tweeted about this. Some officials called me and shared information,” Raut said. He demanded that phone records of Returning Officers be checked to see which ministers contacted them in the 24 hours leading up to the withdrawals. “If that is done, the truth behind these unopposed wins will come out,” he added.
Questioning the role of the Election Commission further, Raut asked what voters in those constituencies are expected to do if candidates were either bought off or forced out. He accused the Election Commission of acting like a “tame cat” under corrupt powers and alleged that both the state and central election bodies were functioning as agents of the government rather than independent institutions.
