Contentious Mumbai North-West Election Sparks Legal Battle

Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Amol Kirtikar has moved the Bombay High Court, challenging the Lok Sabha election victory of Shiv Sena candidate Ravindra Waikar. Kirtikar, who lost by just 48 votes, alleges serious lapses in the vote counting process and seeks to have Waikar's election set aside and himself declared the winner.

Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Amol Kirtikar has approached the Bombay High Court to contest the Lok Sabha election victory of Ravindra Waikar from the Mumbai North-West constituency. Kirtikar, who lost by 48 votes, alleges significant lapses in the counting process.

In his election petition, Kirtikar highlighted that he quickly requested a recount on the counting day itself, citing a discrepancy. The Sena (UBT) leader secured 4,52,596 votes, marginally less than Waikar's 4,52,644 votes.

Kirtikar claims that there were severe errors committed by election officials, which influenced the election outcome. His plea contends improper acceptance of void votes by impersonators and breaches of counting rules by Election Commission of India officials. Furthermore, Kirtikar accuses the returning officer of demonstrating hasty and arbitrary behavior during vote counting.

The petitioner is also demanding the court to review video recordings of the entire counting process. Notably, Kirtikar’s petition is the second against Waikar, as another candidate, Bharat Shah from the Hindu Samaj Party, had previously filed a similar challenge.