Maharashtra, India

An Indian MP Ravindra Waikar's brother-in-law Mangesh Pandilkar has been booked after allegedly using a mobile phone to 'unlock' EVM at a vote counting centre on June 4, reports said citing police. 

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However, Returning Officer Vandana Suryavanshi on Sunday (June 16) rubbished the claims of EVM tampering with phone and said, "It is a technically foolproof standalone device. There is no provision for wireless or wired communication with it." 

Notably, the results of India's Lok Sabha Elections were announced on June 4, where Mumbai North West Lok Sabha candidate and Shiv Sena leader Ravindra Waikar narrowly won by 48 votes against Shiv Sena (UBT) candidate Amol Kirtikar. 

The allegations of using phones inside the counting centre by Waikar's relative has been in focus for a while. Now a report in an Indian daily Mid-day on Sunday (June 16) has claimed that Pandilkar's mobile phone was connected to an Electronic Voting Machine (EVM).

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The report while quoting a police official said that the mobile phone was used for potentially generating the OTP needed to unlock the EVM machine. This incident reportedly occurred at the NESCO Centre during vote counting.

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In the latest development in the matter, the mobile phone of Pandilkar has been sent to the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) for data and call record analysis.

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"We are also checking if the mobile phone was used for any other reason," the Mid-day report quoted a Vanrai police as saying.

At the time election results were announced, Kirtikar, reports claimed, purpotedly requested a vote recount that was not permitted.

Now, Waikar's relative Pandilkar actions inside the Goregaon counting centre, which falls within Waikar's constituency has come under scrutiny. 

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"Pandilkar was booked on the complaint of polling personnel Dinesh Gurav. An independent candidate noticed the former using a mobile phone despite a ban on such devices at the counting centre and alerted the returning officer. The RO, in turn, approached Vanrai police," said a police official as quoted by news agency PTI.

The charges against Pandilkar include disobeying official orders under Indian Penal Code section 188, as per the official. 

Accusations against Waikar, no CCTV available 

Shiv Sena (UBT) earlier issued a disqualification notice to then-MLA Ravindra Waikar, who defected from the party in March 2024 to join the Eknath Shinde-led Sena and subsequently ran as their Lok Sabha candidate from Mumbai North West.

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Waikar, as per reports, was accused of using BMC land reserved for gardens to construct a luxury hotel and was implicated in a Rs 500 crore ($59 mn) scam. He switched allegiance a day after Amol Kirtikar was announced as the Shiv Sena (UBT) candidate for the same constituency. 

Shiv Sena UBT leader Aaditya Thackeray had alleged that “the Entirely Compromised- election commission has refused to share CCTV footage of the counting centre." “I guess it’s trying to avoid another Chandigarh moment...Once a traitor, always a traitor!" he added. 

(With inputs from agencies)