No Defect in Electronic Voting Machines: Delhi BJP

In an ongoing RMN Poll, more than 46% of Delhi voters said they are so annoyed with all the major political parties such as AAP, BJP, and Congress that they do not want to vote for any of them in the MCD election.

By Rakesh Raman

The Delhi unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has reacted sharply to Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Arvind Kejriwal’s claims that the Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) are so defective that they only vote for BJP.

Demanding the postponement of the upcoming MCD election till the paper ballot arrangements are made, Kejriwal had alleged on Monday that Narendra Modi’s party BJP is indulging in EVM-based voting frauds to win various elections across the country.

However, the local BJP unit has dismissed Kejriwal’s doubts saying that he is making misleading statements about the defects in EVMs.

[ Electronic Voting Machines Fraud: MCD Polls May be Delayed ]

The president of Delhi BJP, Manoj Tiwari, said Tuesday that since Kejriwal is fearing defeat, he is demanding the postponement of MCD election.

Tiwari added that due to corruption under Delhi Government and Kejriwal’s own failures as the chief minister of Delhi, he is apprehensive of the defeat of his party, and, therefore, AAP leader is trying to mislead the people by raising meaningless issues.

Tiwari said that various courts of the country and the Election Commission have observed that EVMs are fully reliable instruments of election.

“Due to continuous defeat in the elections, Kejriwal has forgotten that he had won 67 out of 70 (seats in Delhi election) held through the EVMs,” Tiwari said.

[ Dust Pollution: Your Children Are Not Safe in Delhi ]

But Kejriwal is not alone who has expressed doubts about EVMs’ functioning. Congress, led by its local president Ajay Maken, has also voiced its concern about the vulnerability of EVMs.

Kejriwal’s Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and Congress fear that BJP will steal the MCD election from them by manipulating the EVMs. Their apprehension may be genuine, considering the fact that Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) leader Mayawati also has complained about EVMs-based voting fraud in the recent Uttar Pradesh (U.P) election that BJP won last month with ruthless majority.

[ Congress Apprehends EVM Voting Fraud in MCD Election ]

Mayawati has said that similar rigging had happened in the 2014 Lok Sabha election also that Modi won to become the PM. It is believed that the last Lok Sabha election result would not have favoured BJP if the voting had happened on paper ballots.

Now it is argued that the so-called Modi wave was not driven by voters, but it was driven by voting machines. Obviously, BJP will always oppose paper ballots and any investigation into the misuse of EVMs. And it goes without saying that the Election Commission will always obey Modi.

[ एमसीडी चुनाव: क्या आप भी हैं दिल्ली के विनाशकारी नेताओं से परेशान? ]

Now, Kejriwal and Maken are spending sleepless nights as MCD polls are scheduled to take place on April 23. Congress leader Maken has demanded that the MCD election should be held on traditional ballot papers instead of EVMs. Similarly, Kejriwal also prefers ballot papers.

But, as it was expected, the election authorities have dismissed their demands and the voters will use EVMs to vote. In a statement issued Monday, the Election Commission said that a leader of a political party (referring to Kejriwal) has made baseless observations and allegations in a press conference regarding the use of EVMs.

[ BJP May Win MCD Election with Electronic Voting ]

It is largely believed that if the MCD election is held on EVMs, BJP will win it because it is an experienced party to deal with EVMs.

Meanwhile, in an ongoing RMN Poll, more than 46% of Delhi voters said they are so annoyed with all the major political parties such as AAP, BJP, and Congress that they do not want to vote for any of them in the MCD election. You can also participate in the following poll.

Which party can save Delhi from impending disaster?

By Rakesh Raman, who is a government’s National award-winning journalist and runs free school for deserving children under his NGO – RMN Foundation.