High Stakes in Maharashtra Legislative Council Polls Amid Cross-Voting Threats

The biennial elections for 11 seats in the Maharashtra Legislative Council concluded amid cross-voting threats and judicial controversies. All 274 MLAs cast their votes, including the contested BJP MLA Ganpat Gaikwad. The results are expected by evening with political alliances and rival cross-votes making the outcome unpredictable.

Amid threats of cross-voting, polling for the biennial elections to 11 seats in the Maharashtra Legislative Council concluded at the Vidhan Bhavan Complex on Friday afternoon.

Voting was held between 9 am and 4 pm, officials said. The votes will be taken up for counting after 5 pm, with results expected in the evening. Twelve candidates contested for the 11 seats, with 274 current legislative assembly members forming the electoral college.

According to officials, all 274 MLAs cast their votes. Shiv Sena’s Sanjay Gaikwad was the first to vote through the secret ballot.

The biennial elections aimed to fill vacancies of members whose terms end on July 27, with each winning candidate needing a quota of 23 first-preference votes.

In the morning, Shiv Sena (UBT) requested the state electoral officer to extend the voting hour due to heavy rains in Mumbai. Meanwhile, the Congress urged the returning officer to bar BJP MLA Ganpat Gaikwad from voting, citing his judicial custody under Section 62(5) of the Representation of the People Act, 1951.

Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut criticized the decision to allow Gaikwad to vote, calling it a misuse of power.

“Gaikwad can vote, but Anil Deshmukh and Nawab Malik were not allowed to vote in 2022,” Raut said.

The BJP, the largest party in the assembly with 103 members, fielded five candidates. Its ally Shiv Sena put forward two, and their Mahayuti partner NCP nominated two. The opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) bloc fielded one candidate each from the Shiv Sena (UBT) and Congress, with NCP (SP) backing PWP nominee Jayant Patil. The MVA is relying on potential cross-votes from rival NCP and Shiv Sena MLAs.

Recently, the NCP (SP) claimed that some MLAs from Ajit Pawar's camp were in touch with the opposition for a potential return after MVA’s strong Lok Sabha performance.