Maha local Polls: Gulzar marks his vote, Kiran Rao and Junaid Khan join the electoral roll

Veteran poet and lyricist Gulzar exercised his right in the ongoing Maharashtra local body elections, proudly showing off his inked finger after casting his vote. Producer Kiran Rao and singer-actor Junaid Khan were also seen at polling booths, fulfilling their democratic duty on Thursday. The 91-year-old poet and lyricist was seen in his signature white kurta-pyjama, accompanied by a companion. After casting his vote, Gulzar paused for photographers outside the polling booth and proudly displayed his inked finger.Soon after, Aamir Khan's former wife Reena Dutta, arrived at the polling booth with her actor son Junaid Khan and daughter Ira Khan. Kiran Rao, Aamir's second ex-wife, also cast her vote and posed for photographers, proudly showing her inked finger.Actor Maniesh Paul took to his social media, where he shared a picture of himself showcasing his inked finger and flashing a smile at the camera.For the caption, he simply wrote: "Mumbai please go and vote...#mp #vote."In a comment given to ANI, Gulzar emphasized and said that "We are rooted in our homeland, and your vote is to nurture those roots and to nurture democracy, so be sure to fulfil this duty..." Junaid Khan was also spotted at the poll station with his family.

At the time, he urged people to vote and cited that it is something very important and that everyone should come out to vote.Polling for the 29 municipal corporations began at 7.30 a.m. and will conclude at 5.30 p.m. According to the State Election Commission, arrangements have been made across 39,147 polling stations, equipped with 43,958 Control Units and 87,916 Ballot Units. In Mumbai, there are 10,111 polling stations with 11,349 Control Units and 22,698 Ballot Units.Elections were originally scheduled for 2,869 seats, including 227 seats in the BMC. Polling is now being held for 2,801 seats, as 68 candidates were elected unopposed. No voting will take place for these uncontested seats. A total of 3.48 crore voters will decide the fate of 15,931 candidates, including 1,729 candidates in Mumbai alone. The counting of votes will take place on January 16.Elections are being held in municipal corporations across major cities, including Mumbai, Navi Mumbai, Thane, Pune, Nagpur, Nashik, Pimpri-Chinchwad, Kalyan-Dombivli, Vasai-Virar, Mira-Bhayandar, Solapur, Kolhapur, Amravati, Akola, Latur, Jalgaon, Dhule, Jalna, Chandrapur, Parbhani, Nanded-Waghala, Panvel, Bhiwandi-Nizampur, Malegaon, Sangli-Miraj-Kupwad, Ichalkaranji, Ahilyanagar, and Ulhasnagar.--IANSdc/