Karnal, Faridabad Congress candidates seek re-verification of EVMs

Karnal, June 20

Two Congress candidates from Karnal and Faridabad, who lost in the recent Lok Sabha elections, have raised concerns about the ‘integrity’ of the Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) used in their constituencies.

Divyanshu Budhiraja and Mahender Pratap Singh, candidates from Karnal and Faridabad, respectively, have approached the Election Commission of India to re-verify the burnt memory/microcontrollers of EVMs of six booths in their constituencies.

Budhiraja has demanded re-verification for four booths: two in Karnal and two in Panipat, while Mahender Pratap Singh has sought it for two booths of Badkhal in Faridabad. The EC has accepted their applications, as per the provisions.

“I have demanded re-verification of EVMs at four booths. The EC has accepted my request,” said Budhiraja, who lost to former CM and BJP candidate Manohar Lal Khattar with a margin of 2,32,577 votes. He demanded a change in SOP to keep a short span of time to verify the EVMs and also nominal charges for it. Mahender Pratap Singh lost the election to BJP leader Krishan Pal Gurjar with a margin of nearly 1.7 lakh votes.

The EC, through its order dated June 1, issued a comprehensive administrative Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for the application process, outlining protocols for units to be checked, safeguards and controls for conducting the checking/verification process, and the required documentation.

According to the SOP, the state Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) concerned must communicate the list of applicants to the manufacturers, with intimation to the commission, within 30 days of the declaration of results. The CEOs had already conveyed the information to the manufacturers 15 days ahead of schedule, according to an EC press note.

The SOP specifies that the checking and verification process can begin within four weeks of verifying the status of election petitions (EPs) filed in the respective constituencies. The verification is to be obtained from the Registrars of the respective High Courts by the CEOs. The deadline to file a petition for the current election cycle is July 19.

The manufacturers will issue schedules for EVM checking and verification within two weeks of receipt of the EP status.