Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has expressed displeasure at the Nagpur bench of the Mumbai High Court’s stay on the December 3 counting of votes for municipal councils and Nagar Panchayats across the state. The court further directed that the entire counting be held only on December 21 and also prohibited all exit polls until December 20.
However, the order has come as a disappointment for the Mahayuti, which was preparing to celebrate the results on Wednesday. This also comes as elections in 24 municipalities had to be postponed due to legal complications, along with the polls in 154 wards in 76 municipalities. This is the first time in the history of the state that elections have been postponed on such a large scale.
Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis himself expressed his displeasure over this, stating that postponing the announced elections and delaying the results was not acceptable.
“I have been watching the local body elections for the last 25 to 30 years. But this is the first time that the announced elections aren’t going ahead, and their results are being withheld. Whatever method this is, I do not think it is right. The court decision has to be accepted, but this disillusions the candidates, those who work hard and campaign. It is not right for them to pay for the mistakes of the system. I think the Election Commission has to see that this does not happen at least in the next elections,” Devendra Fadnavis added.
Amid reports of cracks in the coalition, the BJP has high hopes for the upcoming local body elections. The party believes people have faith in the BJP and the results will be in favour of the party.