BJP corporators pulled up after their votes for Mumbai civic panel polls turn invalid

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Tuesday issued a show-cause notice to two of its corporators, Bindu Trivedi and Yogita Koli, seeking an explanation, after their

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Tuesday issued a show-cause notice to two of its corporators, Bindu Trivedi and Yogita Koli, seeking an explanation, after their votes to elect the chairperson of the education committee on Monday became invalid. Prabhakar Shinde, BJP’s group leader in BMC, confirmed the development.

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Both the corporators, who are members of Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC)’s education committee, raised their hands in support of the BJP candidate Surekha Patil, but signed against the name of Sena’s Sandhya Doshi, owing to which their votes were counted as invalid. When any member takes a dual stand, their vote is considered invalid during the counting.

Trivedi and Koli said the error happened as their masks created moisture on their spectacles and hence they could not see the ballot paper clearly. Before the voting for committee elections takes place, the group leader of each political party issues a whip to the party corporators about voting, which every member is expected to follow.

In the 26-member committee, Sena bagged 13 votes, while BJP managed to get only seven for the post. The BJP, which has nine members in the education committee, was expecting to get all the nine votes, but lost two of them after their candidates signed against the Sena candidate’s name. Four members of the Congress abstained from voting after their candidate Sangeeta Handore withdrew her candidature, while one member each of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and the Samajwadi Party (SP) voted for the Sena to keep the BJP away from the power.

When contacted Trivedi, BJP’s corporator from Ghatkopar, she said, “I am a party worker from the past 25 years. I had raised my hand for the BJP candidate, but there was a mistake on my part while signing. This was because a lot of moisture had developed on my spectacles, as I was wearing a mask.”

Patil, BJP’s Malad corporator, also had the same explanation. “It was not done deliberately, but was a genuine mistake and I will submit my reply over it,” she said.

On Monday, Sena also won the post of the standing committee chairperson after Yashwant Jadhav won the seat for the third time.

On Tuesday, Sena’s Sadanand Parab won for the elections for the chairperson’s post for the 26-member improvement committee after securing 13 votes. BJP’s Vinod Mishra bagged nine votes. Congress’s Javed Juneja withdrew his candidature and three members of the Congress abstained from voting, even as one BJP member was absent. Meanwhile, in the 17-member Brihanmumbai Electricity Supply and Transport (BEST), Shiv Sena’s Pravin Shinde received eight votes for the chairperson’s post, while BJP candidate Prakash Gangadhare bagged eight votes. Congress’s Ravi Raja withdrew his candidature and abstained from voting.