Lucknow: After the EVM and VVPAT malfunctioning in Kairana and Noorpur bypolls, the former CM and National president of Samajwadi Party, Akhilesh Yadav, attacked BJP and demanded use of ballot papers in all the upcoming polls in the country.
Addressing a press conference at the party headquarters in Lucknow, Akhilesh Yadav also said that it should be interrogated why EVMs and VVPATs malfunctioned in the areas which were strongholds of the gathbandhan candidate.
Raising questions over VVPAT and EVM, Yadav said, “Today people have lost faith in EVMs and VVPAT machines, they don’t want to rely on them anymore. When developed nations rely on ballot papers all over the world, then why can't we conduct polls with ballot papers? Also, it should be probed why EVMs and VVPAT machines malfunctioned, mostly in the areas which were considered as the strongholds of the Gathbandhan candidate.
It seems this was all done as a part of strategy to keep such voters away from voting who were against BJP. Even lathicharge was done in areas where gathbandhan candidate was doing good.”
“When BJP saw all the parties going to Election Commission to lodge complaints over faulty EVMs, BJP too ran to lodge complaint just to hide their flaw. At least now they also admit that EVMs can malfunction. The reason given by EC was hilarious, it exposes BJP’s strategy to stop people from voting against them,” added Akhilesh.
The former CM of UP insisted that all the future polls should now be conducted through ballot papers. “Our PM also held a roadshow to influence voters, but the voters still voted against BJP in huge number in Kairana and Noorpur. I still raise my old demand of conducting all the future polls via ballot paper. I will also speak to all the other parties and take some decision on protest against using EVMs in polls,” he said.
However, as per EC sources, the failure on part of the ground staff led to heating of the machines.
They alleged that officials who skipped training programmes and “spent time on their phones during training” placed the machines at places where ‘heat sensitive’ nature of the device created problems.
Kairana is being seen as a popularity test for the ruling BJP in the electorally crucial state of UP. The bypoll was necessitated by the death of BJP MP Hukum Singh and his daughter Mriganka is the party's candidate -- pitted against Rashtriya Lok Dal's Tabassum Hasan supported by the Congress, SP and BSP.
The Noorpur bypoll was necessitated by death of sitting BJP MLA Lokendra Singh Chauhan. The BJP has fielded his wife Avani Singh, while SP has given ticket to Naeemul Hasan.
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