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BJP believes in free, fair elections: Amit Shah after poll officials check his bags
Amit Shah criticizes Uddhav Thackeray's complaints about bag inspections by election officials, emphasizing fair elections and standard procedures in Maharashtra.
Mumbai: Union home minister Amit Shah on Friday became the latest leader from the Mahayuti alliance to target Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray for complaining about his bags being inspected by election officials ahead of the Maharashtra assembly elections.
The senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader posted a video on his social media handles of officials checking his bags after he arrived at Hingoli in central Maharashtra in a helicopter.
In a post on X, Shah wrote, “BJP believes in free and fair elections and follows all the rules made by the Election Commission. We all must contribute to a healthy election system and perform our duties to ensure India is the strongest democracy in the world.”
Rameshwar Rodge, deputy district election officer of Hingoli, said that inspecting the bags of politicians arriving in helicopters is part of the standard operating procedure. “Almost all such helicopters engaged in election campaigns are checked by the authorities. In case any objectionable material/goods are found in such a check, the concerned authorities like police, excise, and income tax departments take over for further action,” he said.
Earlier this week, Maharashtra chief minister Eknath Shinde and his deputies, Devendra Fadnavis and Ajit Pawar, also released similar videos of their bags being checked by authorities. The ruling party leaders are targeting former chief minister Thackeray, who publicly expressed anger after polling officials checked his bags when his helicopter landed in Yavatmal district on Monday.
In a video posted on social media, Thackeray was heard asking the election officials if they had inspected the bags of Shinde, Fadnavis, Pawar, Shah, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi too.
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