In a show of solidarity and strength, the Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) on Friday staged a massive protest against the Election Commission of India (ECI) over the large-scale discrepancies — including the multiple entries, wrongful deletions and unauthorised additions – in the voters’ lists of the state.
Following up on their back-to-back meetings with state election authorities on October 14 and 15, 2025, the MVA leaders – including NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar, Shiv Sena (UBT) president Uddhav Thackeray, MNS chief Raj Thackeray and Congress leader Balasaheb Thorat – took out Satyacha Morcha’ (Rally for Truth) from the Fashion Street in south Mumbai to the headquarters of the poll–bound Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC).
During the morcha, the MVA leaders demanded that the forthcoming BMC and other municipal corporation poll till the voter-lists were cleansed to ensure a transparent election process.
Apart from Pawar, Uddhav, Raj and Throat, NCO (SP) working president Supriya Sule, Dr Jitendra Awhad, Jayant R Patil (both from NCP), Congress leader Balasaheb Thorat, Vijay Wadettiwar, M Arif Naseem Khan, Bhai Jagtap, Satej Patil, Sachin Sawant, all from the Congress and PWP President Jayant P Patil participated in the morcha.
Addressing workers of the MVA – comprising Sena (UBT), NCP (SP) and Congress – and those belonging to the MNS, Samajwadi Party (SP), the CPI, CPI (M) and PWP, Uddhav alleged that his name had been uploaded on the government’s ‘Saksham’ app using a fake mobile number. “I suspect this was done to remove my name from the voters’ list,” he said.
Vowing to fight the faulty voters’ lists in a democratic manner, Uddhav exhorted the people to ‘remain vigilant’ and verify their names in the voters’ lists.
“There was an attempt to register a fake online application in my name which came to light in a failed OTP in October 2023. Was there a wider conspiracy to delete the names of all my family members? We will pursue it legally by submitting all evidence of fake, duplicate, and bogus voters. We hope to get justice,” Uddhav said.
Giving details of the district-wise discrepancies in the voters’ lists, Uddhav said: “There are one too many repeated names, bogus, duplicate voters in the constituencies of Mumbai, Thane, Nashik and Pune. This is a wake-up call for people.”
“Democracy is dying before our eyes. Strict action needs to be taken against those behind the irregularities in the voters’ lists. There is a serious threat to free and fair elections in the state,” Uddhav said.
Taking a swipe at the BJP-led MahaYuti, Uddhav likened the ruling BJP to “anaconda” “In the film, mothers tell their children to sleep or Gabbar will come. I say, stay awake, or the anaconda will come,” he said. Accusing the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena of “stealing” his party, its election symbol, and even his father’s name, Uddhav said: “And now, they want to steal votes too,” he said.
MNS chief Raj Thackeray alleged that there were “lakhs of dual voters” in Mumbai. “
Hitting out at the ECI for large-scale deletions in the voters’ lists, Pawar said: “Thousands of citizens who have been voting for decades suddenly find their names missing from voter lists. Who is responsible for this.”
“This is not just negligence. It’s an attempt to silence the voice of the people. The voters are the foundation of our democracy. If the base is tampered, the democratic system can weaken,” he said.
“We are witnessing how the government machinery is being misused to benefit those in power and this is not a democracy envisioned by Dr BR Ambedkar. The Election Commission of India (ECI) must act without bias,” Pawar said.
He made it clear that the MVA march was not the voice of any single party, but all the Opposition parties that had come together “for truth, justice and people's and voters’ right “which no power in the world can take away and save democracy from threats.”
Raj said that there were lakhs of duplicate voters who have been distorting the outcomes of the elections and they must be weeded out. He cited the statistical data of thousands of such suspect voters from different constituencies around the state.
“Everyone is saying there are lakhs of such fake voters in the state. Even the ruling BJP and Ajit Pawar’s NCP are saying this. That being the case, why are the elections even being conducted? Why the hurry for polls? Get your voter lists cleaned first. Only after this transparency, we shall know who really stands with whom,” Raj said.
MNS chief Raj Thackeray alleged that there were “lakhs of dual voters” in Mumbai. “
Till now, the voters have voted in both Kalyan Rural and Malabar Hill constituencies where there are a larger number of such bogus voters Clean it up first,” he said.
Raj said that since local body polls had been delayed for five years, waiting another year would not be a problem. He urged party workers to inspect the electoral rolls carefully and take strict action against bogus voters, saying, “Catch them, teach them a lesson, and hand them over to the police,” the Sena (UBT) chief said.
The MNS chief asked his party members not to be complacent because of the MNS–Shiv Sena (UBT) partnership. “We have come together for Marathi Hindus and for the people of Maharashtra,” he said.
Maintaining that it was Rahul Gandhi who raised the issue of “vote-theft” first, Congress leader Balasaheb Thorat said, “Our objections during the assembly elections were ignored. The voters’ list must be corrected before any new polls are held.” Earlier, MNS chief Raj Thackeray hopped onto a suburban train for a short commute from Dadar to Churchgate stations.
Along with many supporters and a large posse of police personnel, the kurta-pyjama-clad Raj waited over 10 minutes at the packed Dadar station before catching a slow local originating from Andheri.
In the first class, he sat at a window seat – a rare luxury for most ordinary mortals, and mostly kept gazing out of the train during the commute, while confidantes like Bala Nandgaonkar, Nitin Sardesai, and Avinash Abhyankar stood around him.
It may be recalled that on October 14 and 15, 2025, the leaders of the MVA and other Opposition parties had met Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) S. Chokalingam and State Election Commissioner Dinesh Waghmare, and flagged the issues of irregularities in the voters’ lists and lack of transparency in other matters relating to the polls in the state.
Among other things, the Opposition parties had asked the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) and the State Election Commissioner (SEC) not to go ahead with the local body elections in Maharashtra till irregularities in the voters’ list are rectified.
Vowing to fight the faulty voters’ lists in a democratic manner, Uddhav exhorted the people to ‘remain vigilant’