Flush on the back of a resounding win in the 2024 Maharashtra Assembly election, senior BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis - widely expected to become the next Chief Minister - took a jab at Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut's allegations that faulty EVMs led to the Maha Vikas Aghadi's defeat.
Mr Fadnavis - whose party is set to record its best ever individual showing in a Maharashtra Assembly poll - dismissed the complaints, pointing out the opposition had no issues with EVMs in Jharkhand, where the Congress-led INDIA, of which the Sena (UBT) is a part, recorded a thumping win of its own.
"I don't (normally) react to Sanjay Raut. But am reacting today as it is needed. JMM won in Jharkhand... in a very legitimate manner. The election there was completely fair. The Election Commission did a good job. The EVMs there were so strong they could not be hacked," he began.
"Democracy has won there. But if we get a huge victory in Maharashtra... then the Election Commission is 'biased' and here EVMs are 'hacked' and democracy has been 'murdered'."
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"Sometimes one needs to introspect..." Mr Fadnavis said, underscoring comments frequently directed at the Congress and the party-led INDIA bloc, including by its own allies, after poll losses.
Complaints about faulty EVMs are not new.
The Congress, for example, was up in arms after the Haryana election loss.
The party was widely expected, exit polls said so, to claim a convincing win in the heartland state, only for the BJP to script a late comeback and, eventually, a comfortable victory.
A furious Congress refused to accept the verdict, insisting EVMs had been hacked and raising questions about alleged delays in the Election Commission publishing voting data on its website.
READ | "Haryana Electoral Process Flawless": EC Hits Back At Congress
The EC hit back hard, criticising the Congress for making "baseless allegations... when faced with inconvenient electoral outcomes", and warned it, and other parties, against "unfounded and sensational complaints" during an election, including when votes are cast and then counted.
Meanwhile, as the dust settles after the counting of votes, the identity of the victor of the 2024 Maharashtra Assembly election is settled, and the focus now will be on the next Chief Minister.
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On that topic Mr Fadnavis and the outgoing Chief Minister, Eknath Shinde, have both made cautious responses, insisting the selection will only be named after a sit-down between all Mahayuti leaders.
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