A poor turnout in voting marked the fifth and final phase of Lok Sabha elections in the remaining 13 of the 48 constituencies on Monday, exacerbating the speculation in political circles about the poll outcome in Maharashtra. By 5:00 p.m., only 48.66 percent of the voting had been reported in the state, including Mumbai. According to political observers, due to the split in the Shiv Sena, many traditional supporters of the undivided party stayed away to express their unhappiness over the betrayal of the ideology of the late Bal Thackeray. The opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi alleged bias on the part of the Election Commission, claiming that the polling process was deliberately delayed by the EC. This delay led many voters to prefer not to exercise their franchise rather than wait in long queues in very hot and humid weather. With humidity at 81%, even 35 degrees Celsius felt like 41 degrees Celsius.
Dindori, a seat reserved for tribals in Nashik, reported the highest percentage of voting at 57.06 percent, while Mumbai South, which boasts of the Who's Who of India Inc., reported a poor 44.22 percent. Kalyan, where the CM's son Shrikant is seeking re-election, only 41.70 percent of people voted. After Dindori, constituencies like Palghar (54.32%), Nashik (52.16%), Mumbai North West (49.79%), Bhiwandi (48.89%), and Dhule (48.81%) reported relatively higher voting percentages among the 13 constituencies. Moreover, Thane (45.38%), which is the home turf of CM Eknath Shinde, Mumbai North (46.9%), and Mumbai North Central (47.32%) were among the low-voting constituencies.
The voting percentage in the fifth phase was noted at 9 a.m. (6.93%), 11 a.m. (15.93%), 1 p.m. (27.78%), 3 p.m. (38.77%), and 5 p.m. (48.66%). There were 13 constituencies in the fifth phase, including all six constituencies of Mumbai, Thane, Kalyan, Nashik, Dindori, Dhule, Bhiwandi, and Palghar.
Master blaster Sachin Tendulkar, who is also the brand ambassador of the Election Commission, cast his vote at Bandra, where he urged people to vote. "As a national icon of the Election Commission of India, I request people to vote because voting is important for the future of our country. People should understand the importance of voting. In life, we encounter trouble due to two things: overthinking and making hasty decisions. Now, don't just think but go and vote at the booths."
Uddhav Thackeray, Raj Thackeray, Shahrukh Khan, Salman Khan, Kiara Advani, Deepika Padukone, Ranveer Singh, Amitabh Bachchan, Jaya Bachchan, Aishwarya Rai, Vidya Balan, Aamir Khan, Mukesh Ambani, Anil Ambani, Ratan Tata, and many other prominent figures also cast their votes. Naresh Goyal of Jet Airways, who was released on bail recently despite health issues, also voted.
The climate in Mumbai was sunny on Monday, with high temperatures. There were complaints about delays in the voting process, and people had to wait for long periods at many booths. According to the ECI, a VVPAT machine broke down at Mulund in booth no. 126. A few minutes later, it was replaced. There was an electricity failure at Bhandup Khindipada Omega High School for 30 minutes.
At Powai Hiranandani area, EVM machine breakdowns were reported. Marathi actor and Shiv Sena leader Aadesh Bandekar created a ruckus in a booth here. According to him, his queue didn't move an inch for more than two hours due to an EVM failure, which was fixed after two hours. Bandekar said, "Some booths were overcrowded, but some were empty. There should have been some planning before the voting commenced."
Aaditya Thackeray also raised concerns about the lack of drinking water facilities at various booths and the delay in the voting process. People also expressed their anger on news channels about the poor management of the ECI, with some calling it a mockery of the election.
At Nashik, independent candidate Shantigiri Maharaj wore his garland to the election booth, and his four supporters were apprehended while distributing pamphlets in his name.
The fate of well-known leaders like Union Minister Piyush Goyal (BJP), Ravindra Waikar (Shiv Sena), Varsha Gaikwad (Congress), Ujjwal Nikam (BJP), Arvind Sawant (UBT), Rahul Shewale (Shiv Sena), Mihir Kotecha (BJP), Dr. Bharti Pawar (BJP) was sealed in EVMs on Monday.
According to political experts, there is a tough fight between Mihir Kotecha (BJP) and Sanjay Dina Patil (UBT) at North East constituency, Anil Desai (UBT) and Rahul Shewale (Shiv Sena) at South Central constituency, Ravindra Waikar (Shiv Sena) and Amol Kirtikar (UBT) at North West Constituency.
Both alliances conducted strong campaigns against each other. Prime Minister Narendra Modi's speech at Shivaji Park and his roadshow at Ghatkopar received a tremendous response from Mumbaikars. On the other hand, Uddhav Thackeray emphasized the need to shift industrial projects away from Maharashtra to Gujarat. He was also displeased with Modi terming his party as the "nakli" (fake) Shiv Sena.
According to the EC, 24,579 polling stations were made available, with over 2.46 crore voters registered for voting. About 41,897 Ballot Units (BUs) and 24,579 VVPATs were made available for these thirteen constituencies, with a total of 264 candidates in the fray.
