Daijiworld Media Network - Mumbai

Mumbai, Aug 24: Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis on Sunday brushed aside allegations of vote manipulation made by Opposition leaders, calling them baseless and a tactic to maintain morale among party cadres after repeated electoral setbacks.

His comments came a day after Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray backed Congress MP Rahul Gandhi’s claims of ‘vote chori’ (vote theft) in previous Assembly elections. Thackeray, addressing MNS functionaries, said he had raised concerns about electoral manipulation as far back as 2016–2017 and had discussed the issue with leaders like Sharad Pawar, Sonia Gandhi, and Mamata Banerjee, but lamented the Opposition’s failure to act cohesively.

Responding to these claims, Fadnavis said Thackeray’s statements were an attempt to “console himself” and keep party workers from losing faith. “They are creating conspiracy theories to explain away their defeats,” he said, urging the Opposition to introspect rather than “insult voters and spread lies.”

Fadnavis also dismissed Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge’s criticism that Prime Minister Narendra Modi “talks more and works less,” calling such remarks unworthy of serious attention.

He was speaking during the launch of India’s first smart and AI-enabled village pilot project at Satnawari in Nagpur, aimed at digitising services related to agriculture, education, healthcare, and public welfare.

Meanwhile, speculation had been stirred by a recent meeting between Raj Thackeray and Fadnavis at the CM’s official residence. However, Thackeray clarified that the meeting was strictly to discuss civic issues like traffic congestion and urban planning, and not political alignments.