'Like Ghajini': Devendra Fadnavis Mocks Opposition Over Poll Body Attacks

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has launched an acerbic attack on the 'forgetful' Opposition over its decision to go on a warpath against the Election Commission of India (ECI).

Referring to the protest march led by Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray in Mumbai on Sunday, Fadnavis said the Opposition is attacking the ECI because it is unable to accept the fact that voters have rejected them time and again.

"The morcha was an attempt to find back their lost ground. Despite all the hype, the attendance at the march was thin," Fadnavis told reporters on the sidelines of a programme in Nagpur.

"They have become like Ghajini. So I want to remind these Ghajinis that Gyanesh Kumar became Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) in 2025, whereas elections in Maharashtra were held in 2024, and the SIR began in 2026," the chief minister said.

Ghajini is a 2008 psychological action thriller where the protagonist loses his memory every 15 minutes.

"How can the SIR of 2026 and the person who became chief election commissioner in 2025 affect the 2024 elections?" Fadnavis said. "But they are blatantly speaking falsehoods, and when people have rejected them, they vent their frustration here on the Election Commission."

The Opposition has been speaking out against the CEC and also the voter roll cleanup exercise Special Intensive Revision (SIR) with allegations that it was an attempt to remove a large number of voters across India for the benefit of only the ruling power.

During the Opposition's protest march, the Thackerays sought the ouster of Gyanesh Kumar citing alleged internal differences in the ECI after an Indian Express report said Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had recorded serious written objections regarding the SIR process 14 times in 10 months.

Congress leaders Balasaheb Thorat and Vijay Wadettiwar, as well as Jayant Patil, Shashikant Shinde, Jitendra Awhad and Anil Deshmukh of the Sharad Pawar-led NCP (SP) participated in the rally.