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Opposition wants 50% VVPAT slip matching, to move Supreme Court

EVM snags during April 11 polls is the trigger: BJP’s rivals

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Following reported incidents of malfunctioning of Electronic Voting Machines during the first phase of polls on April 11, the opposition parties have decided to approach the Supreme Court yet again.

Under the banner of "Save Democracy – Transparency in election process and protection of voters' rights'", a united Opposition said on Sunday it will move the top court over "malfunctioning and tampering" of EVMs.

"Questions were raised after the first phase of Lok Sabha elections. If you press the button before X party, vote goes to Y party. VVPAT displays only for 3 seconds, instead of 7 seconds," claimed Congress leader Abhishek Manu Singhvi.

"Hence, we have no other option but to approach the Supreme Court," he said.

Singhvi accused the Election Commission of not paying heed to the demand of Opposition of greater transparency even if they represent more than 50 percent vote share.

He recently represented 23 opposition parties in SC seeking 50 per cent matching of voter-verifiable paper audit trail (VVPAT) machines with corresponding EVMs. The SC increased paper slip counting from one machine to five per assembly constituency.

"The Election Commission said if we count the VVPAT slips, it will take them more than five days. We told the ECI to increase the strength of their team. It should not take five days," said Singhvi.

He added that adding that more polling officials could be added to speed up counting.

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu alleged that technology was misused during the Telangana elections to delete 25 lakh votes. When this was pointed out to the poll officials, they merely said "sorry", he said.

"The EC lost credibility with the non-functioning of EVMs at majority of places in Andhra Pradesh," Naidu said, claiming that 20 to 30 per cent EVMs did not function during AP polls.

Claiming that services of contract employees were used for maintenance of EVMs, he asked the Election commission if it would own responsibility for their wrongdoings.

Paying tribute to Dr BR Ambedkar, the chairman of the drafting committee of the Indian Constitution, on his 128th birth anniversary, Naidu quoted him: "Vote is sharper than a knife and if it is rightly used, the voter will be the king and if it is sold, he will remain as a slave."

Naidu also claimed that there is a strong chance of tampering EVMs by managing the micro-controller and chips. "Why developed countries like Germany prefer paper ballots for voting? It is because it ensures transparency in elections. Why cannot we have the same tried and tested system here?"

‘FOR GREATER TRANSPARENCY’

  • The opposition parties their efforts are aimed to ensuring greater transparency during polls
     
  • They said the EC should increase the strength of its team and count 50% VVPAT slips per assembly constituency. It shouldn’t take more than 5 days, they said.
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