Rania Assembly seat votes to be rechecked after allegations of irregularities
The Election Commission has decided to recheck the EVMs (electronic voting machines) and ballot papers for the Rania Assembly constituency in Sirsa district after Congress candidate Sarvmittar Kamboj raised allegations of irregularities in the counting process.
This development follows the intense 2024 Haryana Legislative Assembly elections, which saw a competitive race in Rania. Former minister Ranjit Chautala was among the candidates but failed to secure victory. The elections, held on October 5, 2024, concluded with the results being declared on October 8, 2024.
The rechecking will take place from January 9 to January 13, at a warehouse near Sirsa’s Traffic Park.
According to the District Election Officer (DEO), the process will focus on nine booths and involve a thorough examination of both EVMs and VVPATs. All candidates who contested the Rania seat, including Arjun Chautala of the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) and Congress’s Kamboj, have been invited to witness the verification process to ensure transparency.
In the October elections, Arjun Chautala emerged victorious in Rania, defeating Kamboj by a slim margin of 4,191 votes. The constituency witnessed a heated contest, with Independent candidate Ranjit Chautala finishing third and BJP’s Shishpal Kamboj taking the fourth spot. Dissatisfied with the results, Sarvmitra Kamboj alleged discrepancies at specific booths where he expected to win but was instead declared defeated.
Kamboj’s appeal, which included the required fees, prompted the DEO to issue a notification on December 30, 2024, ordering a detailed re-verification. The notice emphasised that the process would be conducted under the supervision of Haryana’s Chief Electoral Officer.
Speaking to The Tribune, Kamboj expressed his concerns, claiming that irregularities in the counting process at certain booths raised doubts about the accuracy of the EVMs. “I was confident of victory at some booths, but the results declared otherwise. If even one vote is found to be miscounted during this rechecking, it will confirm the doubts raised about the EVM reliability,” he said.
The Rania rechecking is not an isolated case. Several Congress candidates across Haryana have raised similar concerns about irregularities in the 2024 elections. Many have filed petitions in the Punjab and Haryana High Court, while some cases have even reached the Supreme Court.
Kamboj emphasised that this rechecking was essential for maintaining the integrity of the electoral process. “The outcome of this verification will not only impact Rania but also set a precedent for addressing election-related disputes in Haryana,” he added.
