On the first day of the special three-day session of the Maharashtra Assembly for the swearing-in of newly elected MLAs, MLAs from the opposition Mahavikas Aghadi (MVA) on Saturday decided not to take the oath in protest against the alleged misuse of EVMs. The recent elections and the state government did not allow fake elections using ballot papers in Markadwadi village of Malsiras Assembly Constituency.
The three-day special session of the lower house of the state legislature began at 11 am on Saturday in which several members of the ruling party, including Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, Deputy Chief Ministers Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar, took oath as legislators.
However, members of opposition parties including Congress, Shiv Sena (UBT) and NCP (SP) decided not to take the oath and walked out of the House.
“The elected candidates of MVA did not take oath in the Assembly today. This is a protest against the killing of democracy at the hands of the Election Commission of India and the government. Markadwadi village had planned mock polls through paper ballots only to ensure the voting pattern. The administration has imposed a curfew on those who fight for democracy. Although officially not much would change in terms of government formation, the truth would come out. However, the villagers of Markadwadi were under siege in our democratic country,” Shiv Sena (UBT) leader and MLA Aditya Thackeray said after walking out of the House.
He claimed that the arrest of the villagers of Markadwadi for holding fake elections through ballot papers was a mockery of democracy. It is a mockery of democracy and it is clear that the government is afraid of democracy in a fair manner. They use the Election Commission to prevent the truth from coming to the world. We will fight for our democratic rights. We want to know the truth. We are elected, and will voice people’s doubts about EVMs. This mandate belongs to the Election Commission and EVMs, not Maharashtra. On the ballot, let fake elections be held across Maharashtra,” he demanded.
“Though the BJP alliance formed the government after the assembly elections, the sentiments of the people are not reflected by this government. This is not the government of the people. The sentiments of the people of Markadwadi reflect the majority of the state. Respecting public opinion, MVA members have decided not to take their oath today,” Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee President Nana Patole said.
Patole said MVA leaders will meet NCP (SP) president Sharad Pawar and Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray to chalk out the next strategy. “The BJP-led coalition government is not a people’s government. After coming to power by stealing votes, they squandered crores of rupees in an extravagant swearing-in ceremony at Azad Maidan. Meanwhile, suicide among youth and farmers has increased with 773 farmers ending their lives in Nagpur region alone. However, the BJP alliance remained apathetic and chose to celebrate its government formation in a grand manner,” he added.
“It is our responsibility to protect democracy and the right to vote,” said Patole. He emphasized the resolve of the Congress to spread the spark ignited in Markadwadi across the country. Discussions have already taken place with Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, and preparations are underway for agitations in Delhi demanding ballot paper voting. He said that after everything is settled, it will be decided to hold a nationwide protest against the Mercadwadi incident.
Commenting on the income tax department returning Rs 1,000 crore of seized assets of Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, Patole said, “Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s slogan ‘Na Khaunga, Na Khane Dunga’ does not apply to his own people. It is an attempt to cover up the corrupt behavior of leaders allied with the BJP.”