A delegation of Trinamool Congress leaders met the Election Commission on Friday to submit a memorandum against three alleged decisions taken by the poll panel ahead of the state elections, PTI reported.
“We met the EC and raised three points,” MP Mahua Moitra, who was part of the delegation, told ANI. “...The rule under which they are proposing to deploy only central forces within 100 metres of the polling booth, checking of only 5% of VVPAT as opposed to 100% and the incident involving the chief minister [Mamata Banerjee] on March 10.”
VVPAT, or Voter Verified Paper Audit Trail are paper slips that confirm to the voter that the vote has been cast in favour of the candidate he/she opted for.
“It is becoming increasingly clear that free, fair and transparent elections in state of West Bengal is becoming a distant reality,” the memorandum stated, according to PTI. The memorandum also accused the poll body of acting in a “partisan and biased” manner.
The memorandum claimed that that the alleged decision of allowing only central forces within 100 metres of polling booths “casts severe aspersions” on reputation of the state police. It also alleged that the decision was taken only in case of West Bengal and not in other poll-bound states.
However, the Election Commission on Friday evening refuted the allegation and said that it had passed no such order, India Today reported. The commission clarified that the order was only meant for civic police, a voluntary force that assists the West Bengal Police.
In its memorandum, Trinamool also expressed disappointment with the EC for not agreeing to their demand to tally all voting machine results with VVPATs.
“We reiterate our demand to tally 100% VVPAT machines with EVMs after polling is over, to reassure the voters that his/her choice has indeed been recorded, both electronically and physically,” the memorandum stated.
Apart from Moitra, the TMC delegation also included Saugata Roy, Yashwant Sinha, Mohammad Nadimul Haque and Pratima Mondal, PTI reported.
Limited-time offer: Big stories, small price. Keep independent media alive. Become a Scroll member today!
Our journalism is for everyone. But you can get special privileges by buying an annual Scroll Membership. Sign up today!