AAP claims poll documents were manipulated in South Delhi, EC rejects charge
However, reacting to AAP’s claim, BJP said the charges against EC shows that the party has sensed defeat in the Lok Sabha elections, adding that AAP has no trust on constitutional institutions like EC
Published: 18th May 2019 09:05 AM | Last Updated: 18th May 2019 02:04 PM | A+A A-
AAP South Delhi candidate Raghav Chadha (File Photo | PTI)
NEW DELHI: The Election Commission on Friday rejected Aam Aadmi Party’s allegations of polling diaries being manipulated in South Delhi constituency, stating that voting machines have been kept in ‘strong room’ protected by three-tier security.
“The outer layer is protected by police, middle layer by the armed police and inner layer by CAPF. The form 17C, which contains the number of votes polled in each EVM/CU and copy of 17 C has already been given to all the polling agents who were present in that polling station. Hence, there is no chance of any manipulation,” EC noted.
Earlier the day, AAP’s South Delhi constituency candidate Raghav Chadha tweeted that the EC has summoned presiding officers of South Delhi Parliamentary Constituency’s polling stations to re-create and re-sign EVM related documents.
An AAP spokesperson, Chadha is contesting the South Delhi Lok Sabha constituency.
Have learnt through reliable sources that EC has summoned presiding officers of South Delhi Parliamentary Constituency's polling stations to re-create and re-sign EVM related documents. This is shocking. What is going on? Why are docs being recreated? Are EVMs being replaced too?
— Raghav Chadha (@raghav_chadha) May 17, 2019
However, EC denied the allegation calling it misinformation. It said no officer was called by the body.
AAP spokesperson Saurabh Bharadwaj said that the EC had called around 250 polling officers on Thursday and were asked to change the sensitive details in the diary, adding that all the polling officers who were on duty in Ambedkar Nagar were called to re-sign on the polling diary.
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“These diaries contain sensitive information and we want to know why the Election Commission asked presiding officers to modify the information,” Bhardwaj said.
However, reacting to AAP’s claim, BJP said the charges against EC shows that the party has sensed defeat in the Lok Sabha elections, adding that AAP has no trust on constitutional institutions like EC.
“Now there is no option for the Aam Aadmi Party but to mislead the people of Delhi. It has failed to regain public support. Even earlier, the AAP held EVMs responsible for its defeat in the elections to the municipal corporations, but none of these charges were proved,” Delhi BJP’s media in-charge Pratyush Kanth said.
