UBT leader Sanjay Raut supports Mamata Banerjee's claims of election rigging, defends her moral victory

Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], May 6 (ANI): Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut on Wednesday expressed support for West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's recent remarks about the BJP of "looting" the democratic process, affirming that the Election Commission's role in the polls was questionable.
Raut acknowledged Banerjee's claims about rigged Assembly elections and voter deletions, stating that her ongoing protests, both in power and opposition, reflect her stance against injustice.

He also backed her decision not to resign, citing her moral victory.
"What Mamata Banerjee said yesterday, I have heard and understood her words. The first thing Mamata Banerjee said was that the Election Commission is the villain, and the villain won the election... She says that 100 Assembly seats were rigged; this is true. It is also true that the names of lakhs of people were deleted. All these things that Mamata Banerjee said are true. Mamata Didi says that she will not resign because she has achieved a moral victory. Mamata Didi has always been a movement, whether she is the Chief Minister, in power, or in the opposition. Even while being the Chief Minister, Mamata Didi has protested on the streets many times against the Central Government..."
Sanjay Raut emphasises the INDIA bloc's is always with Mamata Banerjee, noting that leaders like Uddhav Thackeray and Rahul Gandhi have personally reached out to reaffirm their support following the election results.
"Uddhav Thackeray has spoken with her. Rahul Gandhi has also spoken. I saw there are many leaders in the India Bloc who spoke to her. We will now have to struggle harder... INDIA alliance is always with Mamata ji and will always be. Rahul ji also said yesterday that if anyone is happy that Mamata didi lost, then do not express this happiness, this is the defeat of the country, of democracy," said Raut.
Earlier on Tuesday, outgoing Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee sparked a firestorm by firmly rejecting calls for her resignation, despite the BJP securing a commanding two-thirds majority.
The election results, which saw the BJP surge to 207 seats and relegate the Trinamool Congress (TMC) to just 80, mark a seismic shift in Bengal's political landscape. However, the transition of power appears far from seamless.
Addressing the media, a defiant Banerjee accused the Election Commission (EC) and the BJP of "looting" the democratic process. Despite the numbers, she insisted that her party remains the moral victor.
"I will not resign. I did not lose. I will not go to Raj Bhavan... the question doesn't arise. We didn't lose the election. They can defeat us officially through the Election Commission, but morally we won the election," Mamata Banerjee asserted.
The TMC chief labelled the Chief Election Commissioner the "villain" of the election, claiming Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) were tampered with and citing suspicious 80-90% battery charges. (ANI)