Mumbai: A voter turnout of 48.26% was recorded in the Mumbai South-Central Lok Sabha constituency until 5 PM. In the morning, the voter turnout was high as people went to cast their votes, but in the afternoon, there was a decline amid heat waves. However, in the evening, the percentage of voting increased again.
The Mumbai South-Central constituency is witnessing a battle between two Shiv Sena factions. Rahul Shewale represents CM Eknath Shinde's party, while Anil Desai is from Uddhav Thackeray's party. Rajya Sabha MP Anil Desai, who is close to Uddhav Thackeray and handles the administrative side of the party, has been fielded from the Shiv Sena Thackeray group. Shewale is a two-time MP and won the last two elections comfortably. Anil Desai is contesting the election for the first time.
An 84-year-old voter, Varsha Chitre, came in a wheelchair to cast her vote at Dadar. She stated, "I never miss voting. After COVID, I have been in a wheelchair, but I insisted my relatives take me for voting and I came to fulfil my duty." Chitre is retired from the Bhabha Atomic Research Center.
Shiv Nadar visited polling booth no. 148 in Dharavi, where he discovered that someone else had cast a vote in his name. He approached an election officer, and after verifying the situation, they allowed him to cast his vote. He waited from 12 PM to 5.40 PM and finally cast his vote at 5.40 PM.
He stated, "In the list, I saw my photo and voting ID number, which matched, but someone else had cast a vote in my name. I approached an election officer. They checked my finger. The officers were careless and didn't know how many individuals missed their voting rights due to the officers' careless attitude. I dialled 100, and then a police officer also arrived at the polling booth. The police officer and election officer talked with me and discussed the issue, and then they allowed me to cast my vote."
Pranjab Kamble, a first-time voter, shared her experience: "It was an amazing experience. I want to tell everyone you have to vote for the future generation." Her brother Raj Kamble, also a first-time voter, stated, "I felt proud after casting my vote."
Nilesh Tayade, an officer at the voting poll, stated, "CCTVs are installed at an outside polling station, and the collector's officers surveillance the area. If any untoward incident occurs, they immediately contact us. A while ago, the collector's office called us about an unnecessary crowd gathering outside the polling station, and we immediately controlled the crowd."
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena president Raj Thackeray, actor Nana Patekar, singer Anup Jalota, and many Marathi celebrities cast their votes for this constituency. Almost every VIP and celebrity cast their votes in the morning. In the Dadar and Mahim areas, the percentage of voting was less due to the heat waves. In Dharavi, voters turned out in large numbers.
The Mumbai South-Central Lok Sabha constituency comprises six Vidhan Sabha (legislative assembly) areas: Anushakti Nagar, Chembur, Dharavi, Sion Koliwada, Wadala, and Mahim. Asia's largest Dharavi slum is in this constituency, and Chembur and Mahim are affluent areas, making this a mixed and unique constituency.
In Dadar and Mahim, a large number of Marathi people live, and many have sympathy for Uddhav Thackeray. But in the last phase of the campaign, Prime Minister Narendra Modi's rally at Shivaji Park and the meeting between Mahayuti's candidate Rahul Shewale and Raj Thackeray might affect the Marathi voters as well.
This election marks the first split of Shiv Sena, making the competition more challenging. Although the BJP supports Shinde's Shiv Sena, the Shiv Sena Thackeray faction is backed by Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party in the assembly constituencies within this Lok Sabha area. Marathi voters who believe in Shiv Sena are in large numbers here.
On the other hand, SC, Muslim, and South Indian voters from places like Dharavi and Chembur will support the Thackeray group this time. The Mahim Assembly Constituency, where the Shiv Sena Bhavan is located, is also included in this Lok Sabha constituency. Therefore, due to the Shiv Sena split, Thackeray has sympathy in this area.
In the 2019 General Assembly Elections, Mumbai South-Central witnessed a fiercely contested battle, with a voter turnout of 55.23%. Rahul Shewale, the SHS candidate, emerged victorious in the 2019 General Election with a significant victory margin of 1,52,139 votes, securing 4,24,913 votes. Shewale's win came after defeating Eknath Gaikwad of the INC, who garnered 2,72,774 votes.
