On Tuesday, Akhilesh Yadav alleged that the EVM was moved out of the tally center in three trucks.
Varanasi:
A day after Akhilesh Yadav’s sensational allegation that Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) were illegally moved in Varanasi of Uttar Pradesh just 48 hours before vote counting in state elections, his party tweeted. An official’s on-camera statement admitted there had been “errors”.
Speaking to reporters last night, Commissioner Deepak Agarwal of Varanasi appeared to have accepted that there was a flaw in the protocol during the movement of the EVM. However, he asserted that the voting machines in question were for training purposes only.
“If you talk about the protocol for the movement of the EVM, that protocol has flaws, I accept that. But I can assure you, it is impossible to take away the machines used in the removal. votes,” Agarwal said, explaining that there were CCTV, security guards and political party representatives at the counting centers.
“Political party staff can even sit outside the centers to watch,” the Commissioner added.
The Samajwadi Party shared the comment on Twitter and said it was an admission that protocol was not followed.
“There is information about violations in EVM from different districts. Whose orders did this happen? Are officials under pressure from the Office of the Minister (Yogi Adityanath)? Electoral Commission to clarify” , Samajwadi Party wrote, tagging the polling agency.
On Tuesday, Akhilesh Yadav is accused The BJP ruled over trying to “steal” the election and allege that the EVM was moved out of the vote counting center in three vans.
Declaring video evidence, the Samajwadi leader also said his party employees stopped one of the trucks in Varanasi.
“In Varanasi, we came across a lorry carrying an EVM and two others had fled,” Mr Yadav said.
He also alleges that officials ordered vote counting to be slowed down in places where the BJP candidate’s chances of winning were lower. Mr Yadav stated that guidelines were given specifically for the 47 seats where the BJP’s odds of winning in the 2017 election were below 5,000 votes.
BJP leader and UP Deputy Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya denied the Samajwadi Party chief’s accusations and said: “I ask Akhilesh Yadav to be patient. What is in the EVM will be known on March 10 (Thursday) when the votes are checked.”
After the month-long election, the results will be announced for Uttar Pradesh and four other states when the votes are tallied on Thursday.
Opinion polls have predicted a big win for the BJP in Uttar Pradesh. Akhilesh Yadav, the main challenger to the BJP in this election, is expected to finish second in the race for India’s most politically important state.
