Bypolls : EC defends EVMs over complaints of large scale malfunction

Amid complaints of large scale malfunction of EVMs by Samajwadi Party and Rashtriya Lok Dal  (RLD), the voter turnout in Kairana remained 54.17% while that in Noorpur 61%. Votes were cast for the bypolls to Kairana Lok Sabha and Noorpur Assembly seats on Monday. Polling was peaceful barring stray incidents at some places. The police used force to disperse a mob in Chausana area of Shamli as they alleged that some youths were trying to forcibly cast votes. Agents of BJP and RLD too clashed over the issue. Elsewhere in Babri, villagers of Pal community boycotted polling in protest against their local leaders.

In Noorpur, former SP MP Yashveer Singh was detained by police at Nagina when he was ferrying voters on his vehicle.

An Election Commission official said that polling started on a dull note but picked up during the day and 50 per cent votes were polled till 6 pm on both seats. The official said that people who were in the queue at 6 pm, would be allowed to vote. In Lucknow, Chief Electoral Officer (UP) L Venkateshwar Lu refuted charges of opposition parties about rampant malfunctioning of EVMs. He also met a delegation of Samajwadi Party and BJP on Monday. 

Terming charges of large scale malfunctioning of EVMs as `highly exaggerated’, the CEO said only 15 per cent of EVMs were developed snag and were replaced from a stock of 25 machines reserved for emergencies. “We will ensure that whoever wants to vote was allowed to exercise vote even if that meant working till midnight. Any one in the queue at 6 pm, would be allowed to vote. Commissioners and DMs have been  instructed on this score,’’ Lu said. In Delhi, SP general secretary Ram Gopal Yadav and RLD chief Ajit Singh also met Chief Election Commissioner to complain about irregularities during polling and malfunctioning of EVMs.

Earlier in the day, SP chief Akhilesh Yadav tweeted : ‘Thousand of EVMs are not working in Kairana and farmers, labourers, women and youths are standing in queues in hot weather without food and water. Is this a technical fault or failure in management or a conspiracy to deny people to vote. Such move will shake up democracy of the country’.

The EC had deployed 2,651 EVMs at Kairana Lok Sabha constituency. State SP chief Naresh Uttam along with leaders of Rashtriya Lok Dal also met the CEO and complained about disruption of polling in several booths of Kairana and Noorpur due to malfunctioning of EVMs.

State BJP chief Mahendra Nath Pandey also met the CEO and complained about faulty EVMs and said that the opposition has admitted defeat by making sweeping charges about EVMs and questioning institutional capacity of the EC in conducting fair poll. Their delegation demanded that the EC should ensure that every voter was given the chance to vote and if there was any disruption then they should order repolling in those booths.  The state government spokesperson and Health Minister Sidharthnath Singh said in Lucknow that by raising such issue, the SP had admitted to losing the election. 

SP spokesman Rajendra Chaudhary said that polling was disrupted for more than two hours in several booths at Kairana after which the party chief complained to the EC alleging conspiracy by the BJP to rig elections through EVMs.

“Government machinery was misused by the BJP in Kairana and Noorpur bypolls and money along with muscle power was used to ensure win at any cost,” Chaudhary alleged.   

RLD candidate from Kairana, Tabassum Hasan too has sent a list of more than 100 booths in Kairana where voting was disrupted due to faulty EVMs.  After casting her vote at Jain Dharmashala in Kairana, Hasan alleged that machines were being tampered every where and faulty machines were not replaced in Muslim and Dalit-dominated areas.  “The BJP thinks they can win polls like this. That won’t happen,” she said.