14,286 spycams to look out for AAP in its Punjab debut

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has procured 14,286 spy cameras to keep a close watch on polling in Punjab on Saturday, an exercise it had conducted during the Delhi Assembly polls in 2015.

As the party has repeatedly expressed apprehensions of rigging of polls, it has assigned spy cameras to volunteers, who will be deployed at all the polling stations and record any “suspicious activity”.

“We had done this during the Delhi Assembly polls in 2015 and ensured a fair mandate. Our party volunteers have been given hidden spy cameras on button holes, keychains and pens that can be used to record any suspicious activity. Bogus voters or offer of liquor and money will all be recorded,” said a party spokesperson.

During the Delhi assembly polls, the party had bought roughly over 1,500 spy cameras but it decided to invest much more for Punjab where it is making an electoral debut.

On Friday, party volunteers set out to do a recce of the polling stations and fanned out across the state.

“Observers sent to the polling stations are usually lax but we do not want to take any chances. Our top leadership has already appealed to the voters too to record any suspicious activity. With advanced technology, it is now easy to make recordings even on mobile phones and we have been asking all our supporters to be alert and record any offer of illicit liquor or bribes,” a top party functionary added.

Even as most of his party colleagues returned to Delhi, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal remained stationed in the state guest house in Chandigarh, to “closely watch” the polling process.