The Assembly elections in Maharashtra, marking the first after significant political changes in the state, saw intense competition between the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) and the Mahayuti alliances. While voting began smoothly in some areas on Wednesday, several incidents of unrest, including violence, money distribution, EVM malfunctions and heated allegations overshadowed the process in other locations.

Thane

In Thane’s Kopri-Pachpakhadi constituency, a case has been registered against Kedar Dighe, the MVA candidate opposing Eknath Shinde. Dighe was allegedly caught distributing alcohol and money from a vehicle by Shinde’s supporters. Based on a complaint by Shinde supporter Varsha Bhosale, the police have lodged a case against Dighe.

Pune

In the Indapur constituency, NCP candidate Datta Bharane was seen intimidating and bullying opponents at a polling station. A video of this incident has gone viral. Bharane allegedly threatened opposition workers and even used disrespectful language toward police officers. NCP(SP)'s Harshvardhan Patil is pitted against Bharane.

Beed

In the Parli constituency of Beed, a conflict has erupted between two factions of the NCP. Supporters of Dhananjay Munde allegedly assaulted NCP(SP)'s Madhav Jadhav. A video of the incident has gone viral on social media. The incident occurred when Madhav Jadhav visited a polling station in Parli city during the voting process. Earlier, NCP(SP) candidate Rajesaheb Deshmukh had accused the opposition of engaging in bogus voting during the assembly elections in the constituency, presenting a video as evidence to the media. Now, it has come to light that the assaulted worker was accompanying Deshmukh. In protest against the incident, NCP(SP) workers vandalised a polling station in Ghat Nandurgaon. The EVM at the center was also damaged during the chaos. As a result, voting at this polling station has been halted.

Nasik

In the Nandgaon Assembly constituency, a clash erupted between Independent candidate Sameer Bhujbal and Shiv Sena (Shinde faction) candidate Suhas Kande. Bhujbal reportedly blocked voters who were being escorted by Suhas Kande. Bhujbal allegedly used vehicles to obstruct a bus carrying voters. When Kande arrived at the scene, a video of him threatening to kill Bhujbal went viral.

Responding to the controversy, Kande said that some sugarcane workers had come to exercise their voting rights. Their supervisor had arranged a meal for them. However, Bhujbal and his associates allegedly assaulted them and used casteist slurs. Upon learning about the incident, Kande said he rushed to the spot, where Bhujbal had blocked the road with his vehicle to prevent the workers from voting. Kande intervened to assist the voters and subsequently filed a complaint with the Election Commission and the police regarding the incident. Kande clarified that he did not explicitly mention Bhujbal’s name while making any threats.

Baramati

In Baramati, a fierce electoral contest is underway between Ajit Pawar and Yugendra Pawar, the candidate from the Sharad Pawar faction. During the voting process, Yugendra Pawar’s mother, Sharmila Pawar, alleged voter intimidation. She claimed that slips bearing the clock symbol (NCP’s emblem) were being distributed to voters at polling centers. Sharmila Pawar stated, “I have been moving around since morning, visiting areas like Katewadi and Kanhere. Upon arriving at the polling center in Balak Mandir, I witnessed this incident.” She demanded action against the supporters of Ajit Pawar’s faction. However, Ajit Pawar has denied the allegations. He stated, “There are CCTV cameras at the polling centers, and if any such incident occurred, it would be for the election officials to determine.” He asserted that his supporters are cultured and responsible citizens of Maharashtra and have not engaged in any wrongdoing.

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar

In Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, a video of Shiv Sena (Shinde) leader Sanjay Shirsat abusing his party workers was tweeted by Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Ambadas Danve. Shirsat clarified that he had reprimanded the workers only to prevent them from causing unnecessary trouble at the polling station.

Kolhapur

Tensions arose when workers were asked to remove saffron caps, sparking opposition due to religious sensitivities. The situation escalated further with a verbal altercation between supporters of Shiv Sena’s Rajesh Kshirsagar and Congress’s Satej Patil