Gadchiroli: The NOTA (None of the Above) option received the third highest number of votes in Gadchiroli constituency, the hotbed of Naxals, during the Assembly election in Maharashtra.
As many as 17,510 votes went in favour of NOTA at the end of the final 24th round of counting, as per the statistics provided by the returning officer. Dr Deorao Holi of BJP won over his nearest rival Bhagyashree Atram of NCP.
Holi polled 70,185 votes while Atram got 18,280 votes. NOTA emerged third with 17,510 votes. There was reportedly a large scale campaign by the OBCs and an organisation of non-tribals in the district before the elections to boycott the polls and vote for NOTA.
They were apparently disappointed over the reduced reservation to OBCs and an official notification which mentioned about recruiting only Scheduled Tribes (ST) in Panchayats (Extension of the Scheduled Areas) Act or PESA villages. These organisations had distributed pamphlets among voters appealing them to boycott the polls.