Multi-post EVMS lead to confusion

WHILE ONE MACHINE WAS FOR MAYORAL POLLING, THE OTHER WAS FOR COUNCILLORS’ ELECTIONS

ROHTAK : Bogus polling and confusion created due to multi-post EVM machines marred Sunday’s municipal corporation elections in Rohtak.

The voters were not made aware of the procedure to cast their votes in a multi-post EVM structure, where more than one EVM machines are clubbed together for two or more simultaneous elections, as in this case, where two EVM machines for the election of mayor as well as municipal councillor were set up.

The first machine put for the mayoral polling was not beeping after a voter cast his vote in it. It was only after a voter pressed a button on the second machine, which was for councillors’ election, that there was a beep. In such a case the voters wee left wondering whether their vote had been registered if they chose not to exercise their franchise for councillor’s election.

“This was very confusing. I questioned the polling booth in-charge on why there was no beep when I voted for the mayoral candidate. He provided no answer but advised me to vote for the councillor as well,” said Sunita Chopra, a first-time voter in Rohtak.

When Hindustan Times contacted state election commissioner Dalip Singh to clarify on this issue, he handed over his phone to an “expert” in his office, who explained that if a voter comes out after casting his vote for just mayoral polls, his vote would not have been registered since there was no beep.

“In case a voter does not want to exercise his franchise on councilor polls, he can press the register button and come out,” the expert in Singh’s office told HT. On being asked about voters not being aware of the register button on EVM machines, he said it was the fault of local administration to not have publicised it properly in advance.

Many leaders in Rohtak said most of the voters were unaware of this procedure since direct mayoral elections were happening for the first time in Haryana.

Besides the confusion, the elections also allegedly witnessed bogus polling in many booths in Rohtak.

At Booth 9 created in government school in Kheri Sadh village of the district, the election in-charge did not seek identification proofs from women voters who came wearing ‘ghoonghat’.

Inderjit Singh, the election agent of CPI(M) filed a complaint in this regard to the election commission. When Hindustan Times sought contacted Rakesh Kumar, the election in-charge of the booth, for his version, he said that for those who were not bringing ID proofs, he was confirming from the villagers in the room about their identities.

“We are only going ahead and letting them vote without ID proofs if the villagers sitting as agents here confirm their identification,” he said.