Bhayandar: Conducting elections is definitely an expensive affair for the Election Commission (EC). However, there is also a source of revenue generation in the process. Sample this as many as 20 out of the 23 candidates, who contested for the Thane Lok Sabha (LS) constituency are all set to loose their deposit amount. Comprising six assembly segments, the Thane LS registered a total voter turn-out of 50.22 per cent.
While, the winner Rajan Vichare (Shiv Sena) polled the highest number with 7,40,969 votes, NCP’s Anand Paranjpe, garnered 3,28,824 to trail him by a margin of 4,12,145 votes – both will retain their deposits. The Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi candidate remained a distant third by pocketing 47,432 votes. The ‘None of the Above (NOTA)’ has performed admirably well by securing the fourth place in the final tally of results to the Thane LS seat.
In an apparent show of dissatisfaction to any of the in-fray candidates, 20,426 people have gone out, stood in queue and exercised their franchise, but chosen NOTA as their way of participating in the democratic exercise. Meanwhile, all the other 20 candidates in fray could end-up losing their security amount deposited with the EC. If the candidate fails to get a minimum of one-sixth of the total valid votes polled the deposit goes to the treasury.
Apart from the top three in the list, 20 candidates who are mostly lesser known independents managed to put up a collectively total of less than 32,000 votes. Ironically, the tally of ten candidates remained extremely pathetic as they failed to cross even the 1,000 mark.
