Mumbai University Senate Polls: 55 pc turnout; Counting of votes to be held on…

Counting will be held on September 27. The Shiv Sena (UBT) led by Uddhav Thackeray won all the 10 seats in the last two polls.

Mumbai: The University of Mumbai has conducted the much-delayed senate elections for 10 seats, in a contest where the Shiv Sena (UBT) is seeking to strengthen its hold and the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) challenging the status-quo.

Nearly 55 per cent voting took place at 38 polling centers and 64 booths in the elections held on Tuesday, an official said. There are 13,406 registered voters. Counting will be held on September 27. The Shiv Sena (UBT) led by Uddhav Thackeray won all the 10 seats in the last two polls.

The RSS-affiliated ABVP also fielded 10 candidates. Shiv Sena (UBT) MLA Aaditya Thackeray, his mother Rashmi Thackeray and brother Tejas Thackeray cast their votes on Tuesday, in the battle which has become a high prestige issue for the party.

ABVP public relations in-charge Nilesh Tharwani alleged that the youth wing of Shiv Sena (UBT) “resorted to deceit and deploying fraudulent polling agents”. “This blatant misconduct not only exposes their unethical tactics but also underscores their growing fear of ABVP’s strength and integrity,” he said.

The senate elections for 10 seats representing the university’s registered graduates were pending for two years.. polls, earlier scheduled on September 22, were held on Tuesday after the Bombay High Court directed the university to do so. The HC last week directed that the university’s senate elections be held on September 24 after staying a state government circular postponing the polls which it noted was a last minute intervention.