VVAPT row: EC orders transfer of two more officials from Bhind

The Election Commission today asked the Madhya Pradesh government to transfer two more officials from Bhind district to ensure "free and fair" conduct of a bypoll in Ater, after a row over the demonstration of a VVAPT machine on March 31.

According to media reports, a faulty voter-verifiable paper audit trail (VVPAT) machine dispensed slips with the BJP symbol only during its trial run ahead of the April 9 bypoll in Ater in Bhind district, irrespective of the EVM button pressed.

The EC direction came a day after the Bhind Collector Ilayaraja T, the Superintendent of Police Anil Singh Kushwaha along with the Ater Sub-Divisional Police Officer Indrveer Singh Bhadauria were shunted, a week ahead of the bypoll.

Meanwhile, Kiran Gopal and S Saxena today took charge as the Bhind Collector and the Superintendent of Police, respectively.

Manjeet Singh Chawla has replaced Bhadauria as Ater SDPO, after the EC's direction to the state government.

"We today asked the MP Government to transfer Revenue Inspector (RI) and acting in-charge Naib Tehsildar Vinod Tomar, and Patwari Rajendra Singh Bhadoria from Bhind," an election commission official told

(This article has not been edited by DNA's editorial team and is auto-generated from an agency feed.)