27 April,2009 09:38 AM IST | | Vivek Sabnis
Party claims NCP workers urged Puneites to vote for BJP candidate Anil Shirole over Suresh Kalmadi on D-day
Thursday's voter turnout of 40.66 per cent was the lowest in the city's history and has the Congress worried.
Not only did the majority of the electorate not vote, but they also found that NCP workers were urging voters to support BJP candidate Anil Shirole over Congress's Suresh Kalmadi. The Congress did not expect their ally to ditch them in this manner at the last moment.
Pune City Congress chief Abhay Chajed told MiD DAY, "On the day of the elections, we heard rumours that NCP workers had cast their vote in favour of BJP candidate Anil Shirole." He also came to know that NCP workers were telling voters to press the button for candidate number one which actually belonged to Shirole. "I am going to take up this issue with the Congress High command," added Chajed.
Baseless allegations
However, the NCP city president Jaidev Gaikwad categorically denied these charges. When contacted, he said, "Congress leaders should stop making such sweeping comments about us. It will not serve any purpose for either party." He also said the allegations that NCP workers canvassed for BJP were baseless.
Tension
The city's low voter turnout came as a surprise to both parties as top leaders Congress's Sonia Gandhi and BJP's Narendra Modi had held rallies in the city. The absence of Sharad Pawar's nephew Ajit at the Congress-NCP rallies may have signalled escalated tension between the alliance.
Meanwhile, the candidates themselves are not showing any signs of worry. Congress spokesman Dr Satish Desai, insisted that the poor voter turnout will only affect the numbers, not the result. "Kalmadi will still win byu00a0 about 50,000 votes," he claimed.
Surprisingly, BJP's Anil Shirole also expects a lead of 50,000 votes. "Pune votersu00a0 gave us the red-carpet treatment and boosted our confidence," he said.
