Congress President election: Maha records 96% voting, Mumbai 97%

Mumbai: The election for the post of Congress President on Monday ended in Maharashtra with 96 per cent of all the delegates casting their votes in the state, and 97 per cent exercising their franchise in Mumbai.

Of the total 561 eligible voters in Maharashtra, 542 cast their votes, including by postal ballots, at three polling stations erected in the state Congress headquarters, for the two candidates in the fray, senior leaders Mallikarjun Kharge and Shashi Tharoor.

The Returning Officer for the state was former Union Minister M.M. Pallam Raju and his team of Dinesh Kumar, Narendra Rawat and others while Krishna Punia oversaw the elections.

In Mumbai, of the 239 eligible delegates, 229 or 97 per cent turned up to vote at the polling station in the city party headquarters.

All voters (delegates) were granted entry to the polling stations only after verification of their barcoded identity cards with photos, issued by the AICC.

Among the prominent voters were state Congress President Nana Patole, Congress Legislature Party chief Balasaheb Thorat, three former Chief Ministers Sushilkumar Shinde, Prithviraj Chavan, Ashok Chavan, several ex-ministers, Naseem Khan, Sachin Sawant, state and district leaders and other delegates.

As many of the regional representatives from Maharashtra and Mumbai are participating in the Bharat Jodo Yatra (BJY), they voted in the polling stations specially organised there, while those appointed as election officers in other states cast their votes via postal ballots.

Among the prominent Mumbai voters were city Congress President Bhai Jagtap, while three city delegates voted outside – Sanjay Nirupam in Punjab, Netta D’Souza and Sachin Rao, who are in the BJY, voted in Karnataka at the yatra polling station.

All the ballot boxes were sealed and shall be despatched to New Delhi accompanied by the polling agents, state election officers and other office-bearers.

The counting of the ballots will be conducted on October 19 and the results are expected the same day, said a party spokesperson.

–IANS