CPI(M) hijacked poll process: Venugopal
K.C. Venugopal, general secretary, All India Congress Committee (AICC), has accused the Communist Party of India (Marxist) [CPI (M)] of hijacking the election machinery in Kerala in the April 26 Lok Sabha election, after the State recorded a signi cantly lower voter turnout.
Speaking at a press conference at the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee headquarters here on Saturday, he expressed con dence that the United Democratic Front (UDF) would secure a clean sweep by winning all 20 Lok Sabha seats in Kerala despite the orchestrated efforts to lower the voter turnout with a view to bene ting the Left Democratic Front (LDF).
‘Adverse circumstances’
Mr. Venugopal claimed that around 5% of the polling booths had witnessed technical snags in the electoral voting machines (EVMs), with 90% of such polling stations being “Congress strongholds”. He accused senior election ocials, including deputy collectors and deputy tahsildars, of having sided with the LDF government to scuttle the process.
“The electorate had to brave several adverse circumstances to cast their ballots amidst a chaotic process unlike any polls conducted in Kerala in the past. Many polling booths witnessed the poll process getting delayed by three hours or more due to the technical glitches. As a re- sult, many voters waited for as long as ve hours to cast their votes.
“With no arrangements made by election ocials to supply drinking water or provide sucient lighting facilities at the aected polling centres, some voters even returned without casting their votes. Such lapses took place despite yellow alerts being issued in 12 districts over a several heatwave,” Mr. Venugopal said.
EC slammed
He also accused the Election Commission of failing to prevent widespread “double voting” despite receiving numerous alerts. Besides, several voters had found their names removed from the voters’ list. Several cases of attacks on UDF workers had been also reported from various places. The Congress would analyse these issues to pursue legal action against the ocials concerned.
Mr. Venugopal said Left Democratic Front (LDF) convener E.P Jayarajan was being made a “sacri cial lamb” following his admission of having met Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Kerala in-charge Prakash Javadekar in Thiruvananthapuram. Such interactions, he alleged, indicated an unholy nexus between the CPI(M) and the BJP, allegedly supported by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan.
“Both the parties have joined hands for a mutually bene cial arrangement to take on the Congress that is their avowed principal opponent. The Chief Minister must come clean on his links with BJP leaders. It is up to the CPI(M) party leadership to clarify its position on the issue”, he said.
Battling such circumstances, the “good communists” have voted for the UDF to express their disapproval of those at the held of CPI(M), the Congress leader added.
Many polling booths witnessed the poll process getting delayed by three hours or more due to the technical glitches.