State poll body chief should be booked for sedition if flaws in electoral rolls deliberate: Aaditya

Mumbai, Nov 21 (PTI) Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray on Friday alleged that there were flaws in the draft electoral rolls in Maharashtra, and demanded suspension of the State Election Commissioner, saying if these errors are deliberate, a case of sedition should be registered against him.

The ruling BJP, however, criticised him for raising objections and said Thackeray was blaming the voters' list as he was staring at his party's defeat in the upcoming civic elections.

Addressing a press conference, Thackeray said the draft electoral rolls were published by the SEC on Thursday evening and they are being studied in detail by the party.

"There are flaws in the lists. Voters from one ward have been added to another. They could not change ward boundaries, so they have picked voter lists and mixed them with others. The BJP and Shiv Sena are shifting people from one booth to another for their benefit and to weaken strong booths of the opponents," he alleged.

The former Maharashtra minister said since the draft list is voluminous and not machine-readable, political parties will need more time to study it.

He attributed the flaws in the list to the "incompetence" of the State Election Commissioner.

"He does not know how to work. He must be suspended, and if it has been done deliberately, then the SEC needs to be booked for sedition because they are taking away citizens' right to vote. This is a conspiracy to help specific parties," Thackeray alleged.

The Worli MLA also claimed that the SEC was operating from the offices of the ruling parties.

"We will raise objections but will the poll body take any action against it?" Thackeray asked.

The poll body has only given seven days' time to raise objections, which is insufficient, according to him.

Hitting out at Thackeray over his allegations, BJP's state media in-charge Navnath Ban said he was raising objections over the voters' list due to fear of defeat.

"It is not the voters' list but the fear of defeat that is troubling Aaditya Thackeray. From assembly and Lok Sabha to the municipal corporation, the voters' list has remained the same. Then why cry now?" he said.

He alleged that Thackeray was trying to blame the voters' list as he fears that his party will face rejection from Mumbai voters.

"Staring at a certain defeat, politics of sympathy has begun. Crying will not help," Ban said. PTI PR ND NP