Polling is underway in the Baramati Lok Sabha constituency. In this high-stakes political battle, Sharad Pawar's daughter, Supriya Sule, is pitted against Sunetra Pawar, the wife of the Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar.
Meanwhile, a photo of Maharashtra Women’s Commission Chairperson Rupali Chakankar performing 'aarti' at one of the polling booths has gone viral on social media. In the photo, the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader is seen performing 'aarti' of the 'Marking Compartment' in the polling booth.
After the photo went viral, many on social media tagged the Election Commission of India (ECI) to inquire if this was permissible.
"Now the politicians are doing puja of the polling booth before casting their vote! Are you alive @ECISVEEP? Is this not a violation of the rules? Will the Election Commission, which has become Modi's family, take any action?" asked journalist Sohit Mishra in Hindi.
"Going to the polling station and doing puja of the polling booth on polling day... is this in the new rules? Are there election officials to ring bells, light incense sticks?" slammed former journalist Rashmi Puranik in Marathi.
In the Baramati Lok Sabha constituency, there are a total of 2,561 polling stations and 23.72 lakh registered voters.
