Voting for the sixth part of the Lok Sabha elections will start tomorrow morning i.e. Saturday. After this, voting for the seventh i.e. the ultimate part shall be held on June 1. However within the meantime, there’s a ruckus over the voting knowledge kind 17-C. The opposition and a few NGOs allege that the delay in releasing the voting knowledge is elevating doubts on the Election Fee. The allegation is that the Election Fee is intentionally manipulating the information. It’s apparent that such allegations will cut back the general public’s belief in elections performed with EVMs.
The Election Fee says that there’s a marketing campaign occurring to create doubts in regards to the election course of. In the meantime, at present on Friday, the Supreme Court docket refused to direct the Election Fee to add sales space clever voting knowledge and Type 17C knowledge on its web site inside 48 hours. However by promising handy over the matter to the common bench after the elections, the Supreme Court docket has proven that it’s not giving a clear chit. That’s, it’s sure that after the election outcomes, there may be sure to be a storm in Indian politics. This petition was filed by TMC chief Mahua Moitra, Congress chief Pawan Khera and NGO Affiliation for Democratic Reforms (ADR).
The Election Fee ought to reply the questions which might be being raised
1- On 19 April, the day of the primary part of voting, at 7.55 pm, the Election Fee mentioned that voting in 102 seats was greater than 60 %. Equally, after the second part of voting on 26 April, at 9 pm, it was mentioned that 60.96 % voting had taken place. After this, when the ultimate knowledge was launched on 30 April, voting within the first and second phases was excessive. Within the first part, 66.14 % voting happened, whereas within the second part, 66.71 % voting was reported. Clearly, when the voting proportion is revealed after so many days, that too after growing by about 6 %, then individuals will certainly get suspicious. As a result of a rise of 6 % votes signifies that all the election can change. The Election Fee is giving clarification that it takes time to compile all the knowledge, so there was some delay in releasing the ultimate knowledge. However who will consider the Election Fee.
2- The way in which the Election Fee is opposing the importing of Type 17-C, the argument it’s giving for this isn’t acceptable to the opposition. Earlier than the listening to within the Supreme Court docket on Friday, 24 Might, the Central Election Fee filed an affidavit opposing the making public of the shape displaying the variety of voters. As a result of this protest, individuals’s apprehensions have began getting strengthened. And the explanations for which the protest is being performed are very trivial. The Election Fee’s argument is that importing Type 17-C displaying the variety of voters on the web site can result in irregularities. The argument about the potential of tampering with the picture additionally doesn’t appear logical.
3- In actual fact, the information was simply accessible within the 2014 and 2019 common elections although the elections have been performed utilizing EVMs. Earlier, when elections weren’t performed utilizing EVMs, even then the information was accessible within the night or at evening. On this common election, everybody’s eyes are on the fee as a result of it has not launched the entire variety of votes solid in any Lok Sabha constituency. The fee solely revealed the voting proportion, and that too was delayed by 11 days.
4- TMC spokesperson Saket Gokhale wrote on his X deal with on Thursday, Might 23, that the Election Fee has blatantly lied within the Supreme Court docket. Gokhale has defined, citing the handbook given to the returning officers (ROs) of the polling station, that time 13.47.2 is said to voting. It says that the returning officer simply has to press the shut button. And this can instantly show the overall variety of votes to be recorded in Type 17. Saket Gokhale writes-
5- Kapil Sibal has written on X- Election Fee instructed Supreme Court docket: There isn’t a authorized order to add Type 17 which is a document of votes solid at polling station. Actually surprising! If the votes counted have been uploaded then why cannot the votes solid be uploaded? How can we belief such a fee!
6- The Election Fee launched the ultimate figures of voting proportion after a number of days and that too an elevated one. Congress spokesperson Pawan Khera mentioned that voters have many questions and doubts in regards to the voting proportion figures of the final 4 phases within the nation. First, the Election Fee delays making the voting proportion figures public, then there’s a distinction of 1 crore 7 lakh votes between these figures and the figures on the night of voting. This has by no means occurred earlier than. The Election Fee ought to reply these questions. It is usually pure for inquiries to be raised on the Election Fee as a result of the Election Fee doesn’t give any clear info even on the disappearance of lakhs of EVM machines.
