NEW DELHI: Alleging that the Maharashtra elections were compromised, Congress Friday told EC there was an “inexplicable” rise in turnout in the last hour that added 76 lakh votes, and the governing BJP alliance manipulated the voters list resulting in an “inexplicable” increase of 47 lakh voters in the five months after Lok Sabha polls.
It demanded an urgentin-person hearing with EC, while seeking a probe. It, interestingly, steered clear of any complaint against EVMs, just days after Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge sought a return to ballot papers.
Claiming “unchecked and arbitrary deletion and consequent insertion of voters”, Congress claimed that out of the 50 assembly seats with an average increase of 50,000 voters, the BJP alliance won 47.
Talking about “glaring discrepancies” in turnout data, it said EC’s provisional figure at 5pm was 58.2%, which rose to 65% at 11.30pm, an addition of 76 lakh votes, which then rose to 66%, that added another 10 lakh votes.
Congress Working Committee, meanwhile, resolved to launch a national movement against the “compromised electoral process” and blamed institutional bias and electoral malpractices for the defeats in Maharashtra and Haryana. Sources said there were a couple of voices urging caution on attacking EVMs, even as they agreed on the issue of bias in EC.
“CWC believes the integrity of the entire electoral process is being severely compromised. Free and fair elections is a constitutional mandate that is being called into serious question by the partisan functioning of EC… Congress will take up these public concerns as a national movement,” a resolution said.
Abhishek Singhvi is said to have argued that EVMs should be junked but suggested a graded approach – that till the system reaches a stage where voting machines can be replaced, there should be 100% matching of VVPATs or 10% VVPATS given in hand.
According to sources, Ajay Maken, Rajiv Shukla and Gaurav Gogoi backed the approach but added it was about the larger issue about the “bias” of EC. Rahul Gandhi is said to have fleetingly mentioned EVMs while arguing that the problem was about EC’s functioning.
But counselling caution, Shashi Tharoor said that merely talking about EVMs may not find resonance with people, while Maken wondered how the party would contest polls if it expressed doubts about the machines.