Maharashtra Assembly elections: EVM fault pauses voting for 30 minutes at Kothrud polling booth, voters frustrated

“I came early to vote and avoid delays at work, but the machine fault ended up delaying me anyway,” said a woman who spoke anonymously.

Prakash Ayagole, who was waiting for his friend outside the polling booth, described the incident as ironic. “It’s surprising that a machine could fail within an hour of voting in such a large Assembly election. If we would have come up with some mistake, they would have left no chance to scold or punish us,” he said.

Pradeep Rangdale, the sector officer for the polling stations at Pandharinath Amruta Marne Kridangan, confirmed the fault and explained the resolution process.

“While voters were casting their votes, the machine suddenly displayed an invalid status. Our technical team responded promptly, identified wiring issues caused by the morning rush, and resolved them within 30 minutes by reconnecting the plugs,” Rangdale said.

In Kothrud, the ruling Mahayutil alliance has fielded sitting MLA Chandrakant Patil of the BJP against the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) candidate Chandrakant Mokate of Shiv Sena (UBT).

The voting to elect 288 MLAs of Maharashtra Assembly is being held in a single phase on Wednesday, and the counting will be held on Saturday, November 23.