ECI Maharashtra Zilla Parishad Election Result 2026 LIVE Updates: BJP’s Manjusha Nagpure elected unopposed as Pune mayor

Two Electronic Voting Machines were found in a car near an eatery in Maharashtra's Solapur district, officials said on Sunday, clarifying that the EVMs were "reserve" devices.

Elections to 12 Zilla Parishads, including in Solapur, and 125 Panchayat Samitis were held in Maharashtra on Saturday.

Around midnight on Saturday, two EVMs were found in a car, hired for an official on election duty, near Hotel Swarajya in Mohol town, prompting a few political parties to level allegations of tampering.

Raising questions tied to transparency in the poll process, an NCP candidate subsequently demanded a thorough probe into the discovery.

After being alerted, the election returning officer, tehsildar, and police personnel rushed to the spot, an official said.

During an inquiry, it emerged that the EVMs were "reserve" ones and had not been used for voting on Saturday, he said. Both machines were in sealed condition, he said.

All EVMs used to record votes were deposited in the strong room by 10.30 pm on Saturday, the official said.

PTI

In the last few elections in Maharashtra, the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena has established itself as the dominant Sena group with 57 MLAs and a host of municipal corporations under its belt, along with ally BJP. However, it has one major

weakness.

The party continues to heavily depend on its MLAs and urban corporators, with its rural organisation still uneven and its village network being rebuilt following the 2022 split. This is a structural gap that Shinde wants to close and that is why, in the past few days, the Deputy CM stepped up campaigning for the February 7 Zilla Parishad and Panchayat Samiti elections in 12 districts. Building the Sena’s “rural backbone”, a party insider said, was of utmost importance.

In the past five days, Shinde addressed 22 rallies in districts such as Sangli, Kolhapur, Satara, and Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, mixing development promises with organisational messaging. This big push by the Deputy CM stands out because these are not statewide elections and are being held in districts that have historically not been the Sena’s favoured battleground.

“The civic body polls were successful. Now we are strengthening the rural structure. This is not just about Zilla Parishads. It is preparation for 2029,” said a senior Sena leader. Winning these rural bodies will allow the party to embed itself in villages, build its base, and provide it with leverage within the ruling Mahayuti alliance before the next Assembly and Lok Sabha polls.

While the Sena is contesting as part of the Mahayuti in most districts, the tone of the campaign suggests something more than alliance arithmetic is at play. At rallies in Sangli and Kolhapur, Shinde repeatedly told workers that the party must not remain confined to the Mumbai Metropolitan Region. "We are a workers’ party. There is no owner here. Every village must have our presence,” the Deputy CM said in Kolhapur.

Sena leaders admitted that the push was aimed at strengthening the party’s bargaining power within the Mahayuti. A stronger rural footprint allows Shinde to negotiate from a position of organisational depth rather than relying solely on legislative numbers. "This is about showing that Sena is not limited to Mumbai and Thane. We want to become the second-largest force in the state after the BJP,” said a senior leader. Read more

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The electorate includes 1.07 crore men, 1.02 crore women, and 473 others. Voters will decide the outcome for 731 Zilla Parishad seats and 1,462 Panchayat Samiti seats.

The election results will decide the fate of 2,624 candidates who contested for 1,462 panchayat samiti seats, of which 731 are reserved for women. Similarly, 4,814 candidates are contesting for 1,462 panchayat samiti seats, of which 731 are reserved for women, 166 for Scheduled Castes, 38 for Scheduled Tribes, and 342 for the Other Backward Classes.

The Zila Parishad polls, which were held on a sombre note following the death of Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, are seen as a litmus test for the NCP factions, which contested as allies in their strongholds in western Maharashtra, especially in Pune, Satara, Solapur and Sangli. While local leaders lauded the grassroots-level coordination as a “tribute to Ajit dada“, the top leadership remained cautious.