Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray on Wednesday invited West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee to a rally his party will hold on August 21 in Mumbai to launch a movement demanding the end of the Electronic Voting Machines or EVMs and the return of the ballot paper.
Ms Banerjee had held a mega rally in Kolkata last week where she demanded the ballot box be brought back, saying the Lok Sabha election earlier this year was "a mystery, not history".
"Didi had held a morcha in Kolkata on 21 July against EVMs. We will do it on 21 August. We have no expectation any more from the Election Commission or the courts on the issue," Mr Thackeray said.
The two leaders met around 4 pm at the West Bengal chief minister's office.
Ms Banerjee said she was unable to confirm right away if she could attend the MNS rally but said, "23 parties had asked the Election Commission and the Supreme Court to consider out plea to stop using the EVM. But both rejected our plea. It is not a new demand. We have been talking about it since 1995."
"If someone says they will get a certain number of seats before an election and then get it, it is worrying. This question is in many hearts. Now they are saying about Maharashtra polls also. That they will get a certain number of seats," she said.
Mr Thackeray had met UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi recently and several other leaders before visiting Mamata Banerjee.
Asked if his visit also signaled the beginning of an anti-Modi front, he said, "Not anti-Modi. But yes an anti-EVM front."
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