An estimated 47 per cent voters exercised their franchise on Sunday in the Kalyan-Dombivli Municipal Corporation polls where the ruling allies the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Shiv Sena are contesting separately and the campaign was marked by strident acrimony between them in its concluding phase.
About 47 per cent of the voters exercised their franchise in the elections to the 122-ward civic body of Kalyan-Dombivili twin cities on Sunday, according to the State Election Commission of Maharashtra.
During the last civic polls in 2010, the total voter turn out was 43.49 per cent.
The Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party are also in the field in the civic body, close to Mumbai, where the saffron allies had shared power in the last five years.
The final phase of the campaign witnessed a flare-up in the Sena-BJP belligerence, with Uddhav Thackeray declaring that his party would not hesitate to pull out of the state government if the BJP continued its "arrogance".
In a sharp reaction, Fadnavis dubbed the Sena posturing as a mere drama. But, he later exuded confidence that the government would run its full term and a verbal duel in Kalyan-Dombivili was over local polls.
About 70 per cent polling took place in Kolhapur Municipal Corporation polls which were also held on Sunday, the State Election Commission of Maharashtra said, adding in 2010 elections, the voter turn out was recorded at 67.69 per cent.
Officials said that polls were largely conducted peacefully and no major untoward incident was reported from the two places.
The polls to the 81-ward KMC appear to be a keenly fought contest between the BJP-Tara Rani Aghadi alliance and the Congress, NCP and the Shiv Sena.
The counting of votes will be held on Monday.
There are 12.93 lakh registered voters across 1,010 polling booths in KDMC, while 4.53 lakh voters will cast their franchise across 378 polling booths in KMC.
In KDMC, no nomination papers were received in ward numbers 114 and 119, while in three wards -- 46, 105 and 113 -- just one nomination paper each was filed, hence, the candidates there will be declared elected unopposed.
Sources in the SECM said that the by-election will be held again in the two wards where no candidate filed nomination.
More than the KMC elections, all the major parties have concentrated their political firepower on the KDMC elections.
While the Congress-NCP struck an alliance in KDMC, the ruling allies BJP and Sena continued to walk their different paths.
The election campaign in KDMC turned vitriolic as instead of taking up local issues, both Sena and BJP traded charges over alliance politics and power sharing.
This time also the focus of the KDMC elections has been the state government's move to carve out a separate civic body for the disputed 27 villages, a move that led to the BJP crossing paths with the SECM.
Besides, the BJP conclave on 'SmartCity' just on the eve of the civic polls being declared by SECM also raised the hackles of the rest of its rivals in the poll fray.
This time around the break up of candidates fielded by political parties in the 122-ward KDMC is as follows: total number of candidates- 750, which include BSP - 25, BJP- 109, Communist Party of India- 4, Communist Party of India-Marxist- 1, Congress- 56, NCP- 45, Shiv Sena- 115, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena- 85, Samajwadi Party- 2, Revolutionary Socialist Party- 8, BVA- 20, Republican Party of India-Athavale- 6, Republican Party of India- 1, Bharipa Bahujan Mahasangh- 6, All India Forward Bloc- 9, All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen- 6 and Independents- 252.
The break up of candidates fielded by political parties in the 81-ward KMC is - total candidates - 506, which include, BSP- 4, BJP- 37, CPI- 2, CPI-M- 2, Congress- 81, NCP - 80, Sena- 81, S Raju Mane led S-4 A Vikas- 12, RSP- 15, Peasants and Workers Party of India- 12, Bahujan Vikas Aghadi- 2, LJP- 1, Akhil Bharatiya Hindu Mahasabha- 5, Tara-Rani Aghadi- 39, Swabhimani Paksha- 3, RPI-A- 1 and Independents- 129.
In the 2010 elections, the party wise break up of seats won by various political parties in KDMC was -- BJP 9, NCP 14, Congress 15, Sena 31, MNS 27 and Independents 11.
The seats won by KMC in 2010 polls were -- BJP 3, NCP 25, Congress 31, Sena 4, other registered political parties with SECM 5 and Independents 9.
