Congress Meets Poll Commission After Haryana Setback

New Delhi: Leaders of the Congress, after the party’s huge setback in Haryana,  met the Election Commission this evening and registered a strong complaint, alleging that Electronic Voting Machines have been hacked. Party spokesman Pawan Khera said the hacking took place across 20 seats, for seven of which they have submitted documentary evidence. The papers for the other 13 will be submitted within 48 hours, he said. 

‘We have requested that all the machines be sealed and secured till investigations are completed,” Mr Khera told reporters.  The party, he said, has submitted evidence of hacking at Karnal, Dabwali, Rewari, Panipat City, Hodal, Kalka and Narnaul.

“Counting of votes in a fair, transparent and accountable manner is the hallmark of any electoral process that claims to be in consonance with the principles of free and fair elections and the doctrine of the level-playing field as envisaged by the Constitution,” the party memorandum to the EC said.

“It is a shocking result. Everyone said Congress will form government,” said former Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, who was the face of Congress campaign and the party’s Chief Ministerial candidate. 

Alleging tinkering, Mr Hooda said the Congress always wins when the postal ballots are opened but the numbers start sliding once the counting of votes from Electronic Voting Machines or EVMs begins.

The Congress won on 37 of Haryana’s 90 seats – remaining far behind the BJP, which with 48 seats won a historic third term.  As the voting trend became clear during yesterday’s counting, the party said the results were “unacceptable” and alleged that the EVMs have been hacked, drawing derisive jeers from the BJP. 

The Election Commission had denied any EVM discrepancy. In a letter to Congress chief President Mallikarjun Kharge today, the Election Commission referred to the “results are not acceptable” remarks of Congress leaders Jairam Ramesh and Pawan Khera.

“Such an unprecedented statement as above in a generic sense, unheard in the rich democratic heritage of the country, is far from a legitimate part of free speech and expression and moves towards an undemocratic rejection of the will of the people expressed in accordance with the Statutory and Regulatory electoral framework, uniformly applied across all elections in the country including J-K and Haryana,” the letter read.