Voting is currently going on in West Bengal for the second and final phase, which includes 142 assembly seats. Amid the second phase of voting, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Amit Malviya made a post on social media platform ‘X’, alleging that tape was pasted on electronic voting machines (EVMs) in Phalta Assembly constituency, thereby hiding the name of the BJP candidate. Taking serious cognizance of this complaint, the Election Commission has now ordered re-polling at the booths where such incidents took place.
Chief Electoral Officer of West Bengal, Manoj Kumar Aggarwal has said that re-polling will be conducted at any polling booth where black or white tape is found stuck on EVMs. He further said that if incidents of such tapes being found from a large number of booths within a particular assembly constituency are reported, re-polling will be ordered in the entire assembly constituency.
It is noteworthy that BJP had filed a complaint regarding concealment of the name of its candidate due to taping on EVMs in Falta area. Terming the complaint as a serious matter, the Election Commission had ordered an investigation into the allegations. The commission had already said that if the complaint is found true, it will issue orders for re-poll. Even before the start of the first phase of voting in West Bengal, the Election Commission had issued special instructions asking presiding officers to ensure—before the start of voting—that the names of all candidates are clearly visible on the EVMs.
According to Election Commission sources, the presiding officers were instructed to check before the start of voting that the buttons belonging to any candidate were not covered with tape, glue or any other material. Furthermore, to protect the secrecy of the ballot paper, it was mandated that no colour, ink, perfume or other chemical substance be applied to the candidate buttons on the ballot unit. If any such incident is observed, it is mandatory for the Presiding Officer to immediately inform the Sector Officer or Returning Officer. All such cases can be classified as cases of tampering or interference in the functioning of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs).
Election officials have said this is a serious electoral crime. If any such incident comes to light, the Election Commission will not hesitate to initiate criminal proceedings against those responsible—including ordering re-poll.
