23,000 votes declared invalid

Aurangabad, Dec 4: More than 23,000 votes of graduates were declared invalid during the counting on Thursday for violating the voting norms laid down by the election commission during the voting of the Marathwada graduates legislative council held on December 1.

The exact total of the invalid votes is 23,092 for carrying comments, remarks, slogans and other text on them. They include comments like all candidates are same, abuses, ''Ek Maratha Lakh Maratha'', ''Dile Anudan Tarach Matdan'' and condemned the leadership for imposing the candidate which indirectly indicated at Devendra Fadnavis. They are 10 per cent of total valid votes. The counting agents of the candidates concerned were raising objections for declaring such ballot papers invalid, but the electoral officials went ahead with their decision saying that the voters have not followed the instructions of the commission. In the first round 29 postal votes also were declared invalid.

The round-wise votes declared invalid are as follows:

Round 1 - 5381; Round - 2 5260; Round 3 - 5374; Round 4 - 5344; Round 5 - 1704; Postal votes 29. Total 23092.