Maharashtra Elections 2024: Voting for 13 seats tomorrow; all eyes on Mumbai

Maharashtra Lok Sabha Elections 2024: Polling in 13 Lok Sabha constituencies in Maharashtra, including six in Mumbai, will be held on Monday. More than 2.46 crore persons are eligible to cast their vote and decide the fate of 264 candidates. Voting will be conducted from 7 am to 6 pm in 24,553 polling centres.

Lok Sabha seats going to polls in this phase are Mumbai North, Mumbai North Central, Mumbai North West, Mumbai North East, Mumbai South Central, Mumbai South, Thane, Kalyan, Bhiwandi, Palghar, Nashik, Dindori, and Dhule.

Union ministers Piyush Goyal (Mumbai North), Bharati Pawar (Dindori), and Kapil Patil (Bhiwandi) are among the key nominees of the BJP, which has also fielded lawyer Ujjwal Nikam from the Mumbai North Central. Shiv Sena’s Shrikant Shinde (Kalyan) and city Congress chief Varsha Gaikwad (Mumbai North Central) are also in the fray.

In Maharashtra, the main contest is between the Mahayuti comprising the Shiv Sena, BJP, and NCP, and the opposition alliance of the Shiv Sena (UBT), Congress, and NCP (SP). 10 of these 13 seats up for grabs in the fifth phase are located in Mumbai, Thane, and Palghar.

The Shiv Sena led by Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has fielded its candidates in Mumbai South, Mumbai North West, and Mumbai South Central seats, while the ruling BJP has put up candidates in Mumbai North, Mumbai North Central, and Mumbai North East.

Uddhav Thackeray's Shiv Sena has put up candidates in Mumbai South, Mumbai South Central, Mumbai North East, and Mumbai North West as part of the seat-sharing deal with its Maha Vikas Aghadi partners NCP (SP) and Congress. Congress candidates are in the fray in Mumbai North Central and Mumbai North.

Thane and Kalyan, where the rival Senas are pitted against each other, are prestige battles for CM Shinde as they fall under his political turf. CM Shinde's close aide Naresh Mhaske and his son Shrikant Shinde are the Shiv Sena nominees in Thane and Kalyan, respectively. The contest is between BJP and Sena (UBT) in Palghar, while BJP and NCP (SP) are the main contenders in the textile manufacturing hub of Bhiwandi.

Dhule is witnessing a BJP versus Congress fight. In Dindori, it is BJP versus Sharad Pawar-led NCP (SP), while CM Shinde’s Shiv Sena and Thackeray-headed Shiv Sena (UBT) are facing off in Nashik.

The Mumbai Police will deploy nearly 30,000 security personnel to ensure smooth voting in the city. At least 2,752 officers and 27,460 other personnel, including from three units of the riot control police, will be on bandobast duty on election day in the metropolis.

Five officers in the rank of Additional Commissioner of Police, 25 Deputy Commissioners of Police (DCPs), and 77 Assistant Commissioners of Police (ACPs) will be leading various teams during the bandobast, an official said. Nearly 5,000 policemen, 6,200 home guards, and 36 units of the Central Armed Police Force (CAPF) will also be brought from outside for the voting day.

Polling for 35 of 48 Lok Sabha seats was held in four phases on April 19, April 26, May 7, and May 13.

(With inputs from PTI)