Mumbai: Shiv Sena (UBT) blasted the State Election Commission (SEC) on Tuesday for abruptly shifting elections in 24 nagar parishads, as well as 154 wards across 76 other local bodies, to December 20. The party said the decision was a pre‑planned political tactic that has thrown Maharashtra’s democratic system into chaos.
Shiv Sena claimed the SEC has “proven that its mind is not in the right place” and that it lacks the authority to move polls on such short notice. In a scathing editorial in the party‑aligned daily Saamana, the party described the SEC as a “joker” in politics, alleging that the government—especially the BJP—has turned the election body into its puppet. The writers called the entire affair a deliberately engineered mess meant only to benefit the BJP.
The editorial also blamed the SEC for exposing a ‘Lakshmidarshan’ drama by postponing elections and citing court matters while ignoring how the ruling coalition uses money to sway voters. It claimed this election cycle has seen unprecedented levels of corruption and spending, labeling the contest a “shameless competition” in which parties splashing crores “buy voters.” The piece argued that the delay would only add to the financial drain by forcing candidates to shell out more on a “new Lakshmidarshan” to bring voters to the polls.
Despite Maharashtra’s staggering debt of ₹8 lakh crore, the Thackeray camp said the Chief Minister and his two deputies make empty campaign promises, while the state treasury is empty. The narrative insisted that political games are financed only by the private coffers of the rulers.
Uddhav Thackeray’s faction demanded that the Chief Minister and the two deputy chief ministers disclose the state’s financial condition to the public. The editorial questioned whether the SEC had the power to pull elections without the Chief Minister’s approval and whether the urban development department—which oversees local bodies—had any role in the confusion resulting from the sudden delay.
Finally, the Thackeray outfit dismissed the Chief Minister’s rebuke of the SEC as nothing more than an act.
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