Sharad Pawar Alleges EVM Vote Discrepancies in Maharashtra Polls but Lacks Proof

Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) Chief Sharad Pawar on Saturday raised concerns over discrepancies in votes recorded by Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) during the Maharashtra Assembly elections, though he admitted there is no concrete evidence to support these claims.

"This has happened for the first time, the elections held in the country have made people very restless, there is disappointment among the people. Every day at 11:00 am, the opposition leaders raise questions in the Parliament. They put forward their point but their demands are not being accepted in the Parliament and this clearly means that Parliamentary democracy is not being followed properly. If it continues like this, then it is not right and for this, we will have to go among the people and make them aware," Sharad Pawar told reporters on Pune.

"There seems to be some difference in the votes recorded by EVMs, but I currently lack any proof to substantiate this," Sharad Pawar stated. He added, "Some individuals have requested a recount. Whatever can be done in this matter will be pursued. Applications for recounting have been filed, but I do not have much hope for the outcome."

Opposition parties and leaders have raised concerns over the reliability of EVMs following the Maharashtra Assembly elections. Accusing the Election Commission of compromising the "integrity of the entire electoral process," the Congress on Friday criticized the poll body and announced plans to initiate a "national movement."

The Congress-led Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) faced a significant defeat in the recent Maharashtra Assembly elections, with Congress winning only 16 out of 288 seats, while its ally Shiv Sena (UBT), led by Uddhav Thackeray, secured 20 seats, and the NCP (Sharad Pawar faction) managed just 10 seats. In contrast, the BJP-led Mahayuti alliance emerged as the dominant force, winning 132 seats, along with allies Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde faction) and NCP (Ajit Pawar faction), which secured 57 and 41 seats, respectively.