Mumbai, Dec 2 (NationPress) Legislator Aaditya Thackeray from Shiv Sena-Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray (SS-UBT) sharply criticized the Election Commission of India (ECI) on Tuesday, questioning if it is merely “running a circus” after uncovering “massive irregularities” in the draft voter list for Mumbai, which was released on November 20.

Addressing the media, Thackeray pointed out the numerous “discrepancies” across the voter rolls in the city’s 227 wards, claiming his party has lodged between 3,000 and 4,000 objections.

He noted that party member Sunil Govind Shinde has been listed seven times in the voter registry, each time with varying ages and photographs.

Likewise, the name of former mayor Shraddha Jadhav appears eight times, and Congress legislator Jyoti Gaikwad along with party MP Anil Desai are also found as duplicate listings.

Thackeray commented, “The Election Commission has identified 14 lakh duplicate voters for removal. How can it be that our legislator's name appears seven times with different identities? Is this truly a circus?”

He asserted that there are approximately 5.86 lakh registered duplicate voters, many of which include the names of Marathi individuals listed multiple times.

Moreover, he raised concerns over duplicate entries that lack a star symbol for identification, questioning why the names of deceased individuals remain in the lists despite death certificates being submitted. This raises the alarming possibility of proxy voting.

“In several situations, the names flagged by the ECI as duplicates are not actually repeated and represent common Marathi names belonging to distinct individuals. Conversely, around 50,000 names are repeated but not marked as such. There are even voters who have passed away and yet appear in the voter lists for Vidhan Sabha elections, with some managing to vote. We have documented evidence for every booth across all wards,”

said Thackeray. “What action will the ECI take regarding this comprehensive list? Will they facilitate proxy voting? It’s utterly shocking,” he added.

He further claimed that the Booth Level Officers (BLOs) tasked with voter verification often lack basic literacy skills, with some unable to read the voter list accurately.

Notably, he also alleged the addition of 33,000 new voters to the list post-July 1, 2025, despite regulations prohibiting such changes after this deadline.

“We have engaged with the Election Commission and submitted documentation. We are independently verifying lists and going booth to booth. We are questioning the BMC, state, and central Election Commission about their actions,”

Thackeray stated.

The leader from Shiv Sena-UBT cautioned that if the Election Commission does not provide satisfactory answers, his party will initiate a movement regarding this issue, emphasizing they have two more days to submit further objections.

He also insisted that the Election Commission must extend the deadline for suggestions and objections regarding the draft rolls for municipal corporations in Maharashtra.