Polling in 29 municipal corporations across Maharashtra ended on Thursday (January 15, 2026) evening amid a major controversy over claims that ink smeared on voters’ fingers could be easily removed.
State Election Commissioner Dinesh Waghmare said voter turnout in 29 civic bodies is in the range of 46-50%. The exact poll numbers will be announced later, another official said.
In the 2017 elections, the polling percentage in Mumbai was 55.53, while the average voter turnout in the 26 corporations – elections were held for the first time in Jalna and Ichalkaranji Municipal Corporations – was 56.35%.
On Thursday (January 14, 2026), the focus turned to Mumbai, where the BJP-led Mahayuti alliance found itself locked in an intense battle with the reunited Thackeray cousins for control of India’s largest and richest civic body.
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In the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), which has an annual budget of over ₹74,400 crore, after a four-year delay, 1,700 candidates are contesting 227 seats in the elections that are being held after nine years. More than 25,000 policemen have been deployed across Mumbai to oversee the elections.
Apart from Mumbai, other municipal bodies have multi-member departments. Counting of votes will take place on January 16.
These are the first BMC polls since the 2022 Shiv Sena split, when Eknath Shinde, now the deputy chief minister, broke away from the majority of party MLAs and joined hands with the BJP to become the chief minister.
An undivided Shiv Sena held sway over India’s richest civic body for 25 years (1997-2022).
The last BMC polls were held in 2017. The term of the corporators ended on 7 March 2022 and the subsequent elections could not be held in time, so the civic body was placed under an administrator.
As voting began on Thursday (January 15, 2026) morning, social media was flooded with videos of ordinary voters, politicians and some mediators using acetone to wipe “indelible” ink off their fingers after voting.
However, the State Election Commission rejected the allegations and warned of action against those promoting such claims.
Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray has alleged irregularities in the civic polls, calling it an attempt to murder democracy, and urged voters to oust the “brutal, fraudulent, corrupt and dictatorial regime” of the BJP.
Mr. Uddhav and his cousin Raj Thackeray, who heads the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena, have targeted the State Election Commission on a range of issues, besides claiming that ink used on voters’ fingers can be easily erased.
In a press conference, Mr. Uddhav demanded the suspension of Mr. Waghmar and the alleged collusion between the electoral body and the government. Describing the SEC as an unconstitutional body, Mr. Uddhav said, “Never before have such things (alleged irregularities) happened” and said that the ink used by the Election Commission can be wiped off with hand sanitizers.
Mr. Raj targeted the SEC over the use of PADU (Printing Auxiliary Display Unit) in civic elections. The SEC did not even bother to give any explanation on the use of PADU and extended the time for raising money to allow distribution of money (by ruling parties), he alleged.
After casting his vote in the Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) elections, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said, “I was also marked with a marker, is it erasure? Creating a fuss about everything and raising questions is wrong.” Ink smeared on fingers with felt-tip pens after voting in municipal elections can be easily removed and lead to fake voting, said Maharashtra state minister Sanjay Shirsat.
NCP (SP) leader Rohit Pawar said some cases of EVMs being switched off were reported at the start of polling in Pune and Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporations.
Mumbai Congress president Varsha Gaikwad has alleged widespread misuse of money and power by the ruling BJP-led alliance in the BMC elections, but expressed confidence that her party will emerge victorious.
North Maharashtra’s Dhule witnessed civil violence during the polls, including two groups looting and damaging EVMs and a mob attacking the residence of a Shiv Sena leader, police said.
Published – 15 Jan 2026 08:41 IST
