Madhusudan Gupta smashed an EVM in a fit of rage in Guntakal, alleging that party symbols were not properly printed on the ballot unit.
The Supreme Court is scheduled to pronounce its verdict on Friday on a batch of pleas seeking complete cross-verification of votes cast using electronic voting machines (EVMs) with voter verifiable paper audit trail, or VVPAT.
'I know most of the politicians in this country and I know how fair-weather friends they can be.' 'If they get defeated in elections, they will blame it upon something that cannot respond to their allegations like the EVMs.'
The first phase of Election 2024 on Friday, April 19, 2024, covered 102 seats across 21 states and Union Territories.
According to an AAP functionary, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal held a meeting with senior party leaders, including Sanjay Singh and Manish Sisodia, and political strategist Prashant Kishor at his residence on Saturday night.
'We cannot override the CJI's order... This is nonsense'
District Collector Alok Ranjan Ghosh said that the Sector Officer Awadesh Singh's driver had expressed his desire to vote. According to a primary reply by the officer, he had taken the EVM machine and VVPAT into a private hotel. A formal reply by the Sector Officer is awaited.
Here is the detailed procedure of how the AAP MLA Saurabh Bhardwaj 'tampered' an EVM.
Whatever happens with this election, there is going to have to be a serious rethink of how the ECI, and elections, are run in India. There can't even be the whiff of impropriety. In a country that believes in democracy, EVM rigging isn't stealing an election, it's stealing the soul of a nation, says Cleo Paskal.
'Hopefully, the new majority government will give the country a fool-proof electoral system,' says Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
NSUI demanded re-election with paper ballot while the EC said the EVMs used were not provided by it.
Forced to make an emergency landing in a remote village near Munsiyari due to bad weather on Wednesday, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Rajiv Kumar spent the night in an uninhabited house in sub-zero temperature along with two pilots and two poll officials.
Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar has asserted the integrity of India's electoral process, stating that no discrepancies have been found between the votes counted on electronic voting machines (EVMs) and Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) slips. Addressing concerns about mismatches in polling figures, Kumar attributed the issue to limitations in the data reported by the Voter Turnout Reporting (VTR) app, which excludes postal ballot votes. He emphasized the robust mechanisms in place to ensure accuracy, including reconciliation of every vote with Form 17C and thorough review of any minor errors. Kumar highlighted that the Election Commission rigorously follows guidelines for all aspects of the electoral process, including electoral rolls and machine handling.
The Election Commission has decided to replace 9,30,430 EVMs purchased before 2006 as the older machines are nearing their 15-year life cycle.
The tallying of VVPAT slips with the votes cast and stored in the EVMs will be done to demonstrate that the voting system has been working perfectly.
Senior advocate A M Singhvi, appearing for petitioners, told the bench that the apex court had increased the random matching of VVPAT slips with EVMs to five polling booths per assembly segment and they are now seeking that it should be increased to 25 per cent at least.
Dismissing Aam Aadmi Party leader Arvind Kejriwal's apprehensions that electronic voting machines could be rigged to favour BJP in the Delhi Assembly polls, the Election Commission on Wednesday said the machines are "non-tamperable".
The Election Commission on Tuesday asserted that EVMs used in the Lok Sabha polls are "absolutely safe" in strong rooms, dismissing allegations that the voting machines used in the elections were being switched with fresh ones ahead of counting of votes on May 23.
Buoyed by the exit polls projections, the party has sent its senior leaders including general secretary Randeep Surjewala and Avinash Pande, chairman of the Bihar Pradesh Congress Committee screening committee, to Patna for proper coordination with the allies and possibly also to keep its flock together after the results are declared.
The challenge would be held in the first week of May and could continue for ten days.
Justice Khanna, who will serve as CJI for a little over six months, will demit office on May 13, 2025.
The meeting at SP headquarters was attended by Akhilesh, his uncle Shivpal Yadav, senior leader Azam Khan and party office bearers.
The CEC said when people lose elections, they blame their defeat on EVMs, but when they win they don't do so.
Till date, 107 elections to states and three parliamentary polls have been smoothly conducted using the EVMs.
Mann said there was no use in finding fault with EVMs and the party should introspect on the reasons behind its defeat.
According to estimates, a total of 11.80 lakh polling stations would be required to be set up across India for Lok Sabha polls this year.
Voting is being held in the politically sensitive Kairana in Uttar Pradesh, Palghar and Bhandara-Gondiya and Nagaland Lok Sabha seats.
Union Minister of State BL Verma expressed concern over the situation in Bangladesh and said the government is closely monitoring it. Addressing a Rozgar Mela in Jammu, he lauded the BSF for its role in safeguarding India's borders with Bangladesh, Myanmar, and Pakistan. He also responded to questions on the Samajwadi Party's controversial statement labelling the BJP government as a "Hindu terrorist organisation", the Congress's allegations of EVM fraud, and Rahul Gandhi's call for a caste census.
Delhi recorded a voter turnout of over 19 per cent in the first four hours of polling on Wednesday across 70 assembly constituencies, with the highest voter participation witnessed in North East district.
Rejecting the contention of political parties like Bharatiya Janata Party, AIADMK and CPI(M) that electronic voting machines (EVMs) were tampered with during the Lok Sabha polls, Chief Election Commissioner Navin Chawla today said no one was able to prove it.
To clear doubts over EVMs, Chief Election Commissioner Nasim Zaidi will soon call all-party meet.
The final turnout in the Maharashtra assembly polls was 66.05 percent, up from 61.1 percent in 2019, according to the Election Commission. The polling percentage for the Nanded Lok Sabha bypoll was 67.81 percent. The increase, excluding postal ballots, highlighted the EC's efforts to engage a broader electorate, the statement added. Kolhapur led with 76.63 per cent, followed by 75.26 per cent in Gadchiroli, while the lowest was in Mumbai island city at 52.07 per cent and 55.95 per cent in the metropolis' suburban district. More than 68,000 citizens aged over 85 and 12,000 individuals with disabilities cast their votes through home voting.
The Patidar leader also urged the Congress to raise the issue of EVM tampering.
"The IAF played a vital role in five of the seven phases of the general elections, flying over 1,000 hours in over 1,750 sorties," it said.
It would be far more sensible for AAP to build on what they have achieved than to destroy what credibility they have by floating wild conspiracy theories, says Sankrant Sanu.
On the basis of her committee's report, the UCC in Uttarakhand established mandatory registration for marriages and live-in relationships, banned polygamy, and provided equal inheritance rights for women.
"If you see in the context of alliances and statistics, then this is the strongest alliance government," Modi said while addressing newly-elected MPs and leaders of the NDA from across the country following his election as leader of the ruling bloc ahead of his government's swearing-in on Sunday.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has said the Mahayuti allies have agreed to conduct a 'performance audit' of ministers during their tenure.
The demand for repoll included three polling stations under Chief Minister N Biren Singh's assembly constituency of Heingang.
The leaders of the INDIA requested the EC to instruct its officials that they should follow the guidelines.
