High drama at Pune ward office as Shiv Sena candidate tears, swallows rival's civil poll form

Uddhav Kamble with Maharashtra Deputy CM Eknath Shinde(Courtesy: Facebook)

• Shiv Sena candidate tore and allegedly ate rival's AB form at Pune ward office
• Police registered a case against Kamble for obstructing election officials
• Kamble denied swallowing the form but admitted tearing it up in anger

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There was high drama at a Pune ward office where AB forms for the upcoming civic polls were being issued. A Shiv Sena (Shinde faction) candidate reportedly tore apart and swallowed the AB form of his rival nominee from the same party.

On December 31, Shiv Sena handed over AB forms to Machhindra Davale and Uddhav Kamble from Ward No. 36A in the Dhankawadi-Sahakarnagar area of Pune. Upon learning about duplicate forms ahead of filing his papers, an upset Kumble snatch his rival's form and tore it. He then swallowed the balled up pieces in presence of Election Commission (EC) officials.

A case has been registered against Kamble at the Bharati Vidyapeeth police station for obstructing a public servant while he was performing official duties during the election process. Further investigation into the matter is underway.

According to a report in NDTV, the police said that the complaint from the poll body was that Kamble had taken Davale's form during scrutiny, tore it up and put it in his mouth and rushed towards the washroom.

"We are investigating the matter," said Rahul Khilare, a senior officer of the Bharati Vidyapeeth police station.

While Kamble denied swallowing his rival's form, he admitted tearing it up in anger. "I don't know who this Davale person is. He has no connection to our party and isn't a party official. I've never even met him," he said.

"When I found the other form, out of anger and frustration, I tore it up... I was deeply upset that the Election Commission, a government body, would lie to an official candidate from a national party like the Shiv Sena," Kamble added.

When he reached out to senior party leaders, Kamble was told that the form had not been issued to any other party worker. He received similar responses from the party's district heads and even the Election Commission.

When asked where the torn form was, Kamble said he was clueless about it. "In the middle of the chaos, I don't know where the pieces went. But if they're (EC officials) claiming I ate it, I'm here at the police station to challenge that... I should undergo a medical examination. If the form is found in my stomach, then they can proceed with legal action. But if it's not, they should withdraw the false complaint".