'We have stayed above political pressure'

A high-voltage election is nearing its end, are you satisfied with how things went?

Yes. We have done fairly well, thanks to a concerted effort from different agencies and departments which has been the highlight of this election. Unlike before when we worked in silos, we worked together and as a single entity this time.

A single-phase election must have been challenging...

A single-phase election has both advantages and disadvantages. The advantage is that it allows the curbing of malpractices better and more efficiently. The challenge, however, is that we have to work with fewer electoral staff. However, all our staff have worked efficiently to ensure that the shortage didn’t seem a problem.

Common citizens have complained of the EC’s enforcement excesses.

It may appear that we’ve been over-zealous... But that’s not the case. We’ve repeatedly told the public that they don’t need permission for every private function — weddings, naming ceremonies and so on. That said, we had to be vigilant to ensure that political parties and leaders didn’t misuse private functions to canvass. I think, our message has reached the people and they understand.

Polls in Karnataka have been seen as relatively clean. Do you think the unprecedented seizure of cash and liquor has belied this perception?

Not exactly. While there has been a giant leap in the quantity and value of seizures – cash seizures went up to Rs 80 crore from Rs 14 crore in 2013 and liquor seizure increased from 68,000 litres to nearly 6 lakh litres – it is only a reflection of an effective enforcement system and is not an indication of how elections happen in the state. Proof for deft execution of our work is also in the number of new enrollments, taking the total number of electors to more than 5 crore. Enrolment of first-time voters nearly doubled from the 7 lakh-odd seen in 2013.

There’s criticism that the seizures were a ‘ploy’ to show the ruling party in poor light?

It is not true. Firstly, we are not concerned about the political slugfest that has resulted in some of this criticism. Secondly, if you look at it objectively, BJP has criticised us more than the other parties, whether it was the issue of hoardings or permissions to land helicopters during campaigns.

It is felt that the EC was under tremendous political pressure, more than during any other election...

It is natural that there is pressure during a high-voltage election. But we have not succumbed to any such pressure while carrying out our duty to ensure a free-and-fair election. For example, recalling of three video advertisements each of BJP and Congress was a strong decision...

Some quarters say the Hassan DC and BBMP commissioner were transferred under such pressure...

This is not the first time that officials were transferred. In fact, in 2013, there were more such transfers. The ECI had transferred three deputy commissioners, 11 superintendents of police and even the Bengaluru police commissioner among others, last time.

What prompted you to make a midnight announcement on the seizure of voter IDs in RR Nagar?

Initially we were concerned that the cards were fake which could have meant that our IT system was breached. A lot of quick decisions were then taken, and it was important to tell the people that our system was secure and that the cards were indeed genuine.

There was a lot of apprehension about EVMs even before the dates were announced…

It is no longer an issue. Our awareness programmes have managed to rid the people of the apprehensions. It was important that voters understand how EVMs work and how secure they are. Once that became clear, the doubts disappeared.