E-Paper
INDIA bloc divided over EVMs? After Omar, TMC's Abhishek Banerjee questions Congress
Abhishek Banerjee urged the Congress to "show a demo" if they truly believe in the possibility of EVM tampering
Amidst Congress’s ongoing allegations regarding the veracity of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs), Trinamool Congress general secretary Abhishek Banerjee on Monday reacted sharply against its ally and urged the grand old party to "show a demo" if they truly believe in the possibility of EVM tampering.
"This is my personal opinion that those who are raising questions on the EVMs should show a demo of its discrepancies to the EC. They should show any video as evidence to the EC. The EC even called everyone. I have been conducting elections on-ground for a long time," said Banerjee.
The TMC MP from West Bengal's Diamond Harbour also dismissed claims made by Congress and others questioning the reliability of EVMs, suggesting that proper procedures during randomisation, mock polls, and booth-level checks ensure the system’s integrity.
READ | 'EVMs fine if you win, tainted if you lose': Supreme Court
“If someone works well during EVM randomisation and the booth workers check EVMs during mock polls or review the form 17C, which is used to check ballot units or control units, during the counting of votes, I don't think there is anything substantial in these allegations of EVM manipulation,” he added.
The Trinamool MP was responding to Jammu and Kashmir CM Omar Abdullah's remarks on Congress's EVM allegations where he stated that one should not question the voting machines based on the mere outcomes of the election.
NC's Omar Abdullah on EVMs
In an interview with news agency PTI, the National Conference leader dismissed the objections to EVMs, saying it cannot be that the Congress celebrates its win in polls held through the machines and then raises questions on their reliability when it loses.
"When you get hundred-plus members of Parliament using the same EVMs and you celebrate that as sort of a victory for your party, you can't then a few months later turn around and say... we don't like these EVMs because now the election results aren't going the way we would like them to," Abdullah said.
While NC, TMC and Congress are allies, Banerjee’s remarks underline a growing divergence within the opposition INDIA bloc on the issue of EVMs.
Congress has been vocal about its preference for a return to the ballot paper system.
