Latest news with #EVMs'
Indian Express
25-07-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
Pune: Poll officer says EVM inspection, verification done; Dodke claims demand not met
The Pune district election office on Friday said it has completed inspecting and verifying electronic voting machines (EVMs) of two polling stations in Khadakwasla assembly constituency. However, NCP(SP) candidate Sachin Dodke claimed that the process was stopped midway, after election officers refused to accept his demand to count the VVPATs of respective polling booths to verify the actual voting. Dodke was defeated by BJP candidate Bhimrao Tapkir by 52,000 votes in Khadakwasla assembly seat in the November 2024 assembly elections. He was one of the many who raised doubts over the EVMs and alleged it was being tampered with. EVM inspections and verifications, which also involves mock polls, for Khadakwasla was done at a Bhosari godown in the district, where voting machines are stored in a strong room. 'We have carried out the process of inspection and verification of EVMs of two polling stations in the Khadakwasla assembly constituency as per the demand of the applicant. He was shown the count on EVM of the assembly election. However, he refused to have the EVMs' memory erased for the next step, which is conducting the mock poll, and has given it in writing, so the process stands completed now from our side,' said Yashwant Mane, returning officer of Khadakwasla assembly seat. Regarding the demand to count the VVPATs of respective polling booths to match the count on EVMs, he said, 'This was not part of the SoP laid down to us for inspection and verification of EVMs. However, matching EVM data and VVPAT data of five EVMs was done during the counting process.' Dodke said that EVM count was shown during the counting process and questioned why he would spend money to do the same thing again. 'My demand was to hold a recount by verifying the EVMs' count with VVPAT slips to assure that there was no tampering of EVMs during elections. I am not satisfied and will appeal against it in the court,' he said. He claimed the verification process and selection of EVMs was stopped as the election officers were unable to justify his demands. The district election office was to inspect and verify EVMs of 27 polling booths in Hadapsar constituency as per the demand of NCP(SP) candidate Prashant Jagtap. He later informed his election petition was pending in the Bombay High Court so the process of his application was suspended on Thursday. After losing the November 2024 Maharashtra Assembly elections, Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) candidates had alleged irregularities. Ajay Jadhav is an Assistant Editor with The Indian Express, Pune. He writes on Infrastructure, Politics, Civic issues, Sustainable Development and related stuff. He is a trekker and a sports enthusiast. Ajay has written research articles on the Conservancy staff that created a nationwide impact in framing policy to improve the condition of workers handling waste. Ajay has been consistently writing on politics and infrastructure. He brought to light the lack of basic infrastructure of school and hospital in the hometown of Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde even as two private helipads were developed by the leader who mostly commutes from Mumbai to Satara in helicopter. Ajay has been reporting on sustainable development initiatives that protects the environment while ensuring infrastructure development. ... Read More
Indian Express
24-07-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
EVMs inspection, verification suspended for Hadapsar seat but held to be conducted only for Khadakwasla seat
The Pune district election office has suspended inspection and verification of electronic voting machines (EVMs) of 27 polling stations in Hadapsar constituency after NCP(SP) candidate Prashant Jagtap pointed out that his election petition was pending in the Bombay High Court. The same process however will be executed for EVMs of two polling stations in Khadakwasla assembly constituency. The district election office had earlier announced inspecting and verifying EVMs of 27 polling stations in Hadapsar constituency following an application by NCP(SP) candidate Prashant Jagtap and of two polling stations in Khadakwasla assembly after NCP(SP) candidate Sachin Dodke's application. It was scheduled from July 25 to August 2. 'The inspection and verification of EVMs of 27 polling stations in Hadapsar constituency has been suspended as the applicant has communicated about the pending election petition,' said deputy district election officer and deputy collector Meenal Kalaskar. The move was taken after consulting with the Election Commission of India, she said adding, 'Inspection and verification of EVMs in two polling stations in Khadakwasla constituency on an application of NCP(SP) candidate Sachin Dodke will be done on July 25.' After losing, Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) candidates had alleged irregularities in the November 2024 Maharashtra Assembly elections. The checking and verification of the EVMs, which will also involve mock polls, will be done at the Bhosari godown in the district, where the voting machines are stored in a strong room. The entire process will be carried out as per the Election Commission (EC)'s standard operating procedure (SOP). Each EVM comprising a control unit and a VVPAT (voter verified paper audit trail) machine with 1,400 votes would be checked, official sources said. According to the deputy district election officer and deputy collector, Meenal Kalaskar, EVMs' data will be verified, which were registered during the counting of votes in November 2024, in the presence of the candidate's representatives. 'The data will be erased and a mock poll for each EVM consisting of a control unit and a VVPAT will be conducted to further verify the operation of the machine,' Kalaskar said, adding that a final report will be submitted to the EC for any further action. Dodke was defeated by BJP candidate Bhimrao Tapkir by 52,000 votes in Khadakwasla assembly seat. 'I will participate in the inspection and verification of EVMs of two polling stations which I had asked for. I had demanded that VVPAT slips be counted with EVM data, however they are not doing so. I have reiterated in writing that VVPAT slips of respective EVMs are counted to verify the count. If they don't agree, then we will register our protest,' said Dodke. He said the mock poll of EVMs didn't make sense as it had already been done during the assembly election. 'They need to verify the EVMs by counting the VVPAT slips of the election with respective EVMs to clear the doubt,' said Dodke.
Indian Express
23-07-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
Amid Maharashtra poll ‘fraud' row, decks cleared for EVM verification, mock polls in Pune seats
Months after several losing Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) candidates alleged irregularities in the November 2024 Maharashtra Assembly elections, the Pune district election officer has ordered inspection and verification of electronic voting machines (EVMs) of 27 polling stations in the Hadapsar constituency on an application of NCP(SP) candidate Prashant Jagtap from July 25 to August 2. Jagtap was defeated by sitting NCP legislator Chetan Tupe by 7,122 votes. Jagtap has deposited a fee of Rs 12.74 lakh to the district election officer or collector for the EVMs' verification in 27 of the constituency's booths, where he believes he should have gained an upper hand. The checking and verification of the 27 EVMs, which will also involve mock polls, will be done at the Bhosari godown in the district, where the voting machines are stored in a strong room. The entire process will be carried out as per the Election Commission (EC)'s standard operating procedure (SOP). Each EVM comprising a control unit and a VVPAT (voter verified paper audit trail) machine with 1,400 votes would be checked, official sources said. Two EVMs would be verified on July 25, followed by the checking of four voting machines each day for the next six days, with the remaining one machine to be verified on August 2. According to the deputy district election officer and deputy collector, Meenal Kalaskar, 27 EVMs' data will be verified, which were registered during the counting of votes in November 2024, in the presence of the candidate's representatives. 'The data will be erased and a mock poll for each EVM consisting of a control unit and a VVPAT will be conducted to further verify the operation of the machine,' Kalaskar said, adding that a final report will be submitted to the EC for any further action. Jagtap said the checking and verification of EVMs would 'expose' alleged electoral malpractices due to which, he claimed, he lost the polls in Hadapsar to his NCP rival. He said he would seek re-election once it is proved that the EVMs had 'discrepancies' during the polls. While the Sharad Pawar-led NCP(SP) is an ally of the MVA, the NCP, headed by Ajit Pawar, is a key constituent of the ruling BJP-led Mahayuti coalition. Chetan Tupe, however, rejected Jagtap's allegations, saying that 'The defeated candidate will achieve nothing out of this exercise. It is a mere mock poll. It has been proved time and again that EVMs are accurate. The defeated candidate has raised doubts about EVMs, so it is between Jagtap and Election Commission.' He also said, 'I have been elected and declared a legislator constitutionally. I have nothing to worry about. There is no question of any re-election.' The mock drill of each EVM is done before the start of voting and only verified machines are used in actual polling, Tupe said, pointing out that the verification of five EVMs of each Assembly constituency had also been done after the counting of votes, in which votes polled are matched with the VVPAT slips. 'Both times, there were no problems in EVMs. It will be the same now,' he said, adding Jagtap should accept his defeat. The incumbent Mahayuti, which includes the BJP and Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena besides the NCP (SP), swept the Assembly polls, winning 235 of the total 288 seats as against the MVA's 50, with the latter comprising the Congress, Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT) and the NCP. However, barely five months earlier, in June 2024, the MVA had won 30 of the total 48 seats in the Lok Sabha polls in the state as against the Mahayuti's 17. So, in the wake of the Assembly poll results, the MVA leaders alleged that manipulated EVMs and rigged polls caused their debacle, with some of their losing candidates challenging it before the state election authorities too. The Pune administration's July 25-August 2 exercise will also involve the district's Khadakwasla Assembly constituency. The losing NCP(SP) candidate in Khadakwasla, Sachin Dodke, has sought the inspection and verification of only two EVMs though. He was defeated by BJP candidate Bhimrao Tapkir by 52,000 votes, who bagged the seat for the fourth consecutive time. Significantly, an NCP(SP) candidate, Uttamrao Jankar, also alleged tampering of EVMs despite winning his election from the Malshiras Assembly seat in Solapur district against the BJP candidate by over 13,000 votes. He extended his support to a mock poll with ballot papers proposed by the people of Markadwadi village in his constituency to 'verify' the Assembly poll results. However, the Markadwadi villagers' proposed ballot paper exercise on December 3 last year was called off after police warned of action citing prohibitory orders issued by the district administration. 'We will take up this issue with the EC and judiciary, we will not stop until we get justice,' Jankar had then said.
Hindustan Times
06-06-2025
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
Warehouse planned on Wadala salt pan land to stock EVMs
MUMBAI: The state government is planning to construct a warehouse on a plot, classified as salt pan land a few decades ago but has since been lying vacant, in Wadala, to stock electronic voting machines (EVMs) issued to Mumbai city collectorate. The machines are traditionally stored in select sections of offices of the Mumbai Port Authority, Railways, and schools, among other places. The state chief electoral officer (CEO) S Chockalingam said, 'While earlier, EVMs were even stored in godowns stocking food grains, now we have decided to construct special places to store them. We have constructed similar godowns in 21 districts.' The Mumbai city district, stretching from Colaba to Mahim, has 2537 polling stations, with 6869 ballot units, 4798 control units and 4982 voter verifiable paper audit trail (VVPAT) machines, said Mumbai city deputy district election officer Shyam Surwase. The warehouse in Wadala will house the machines put to use in this stretch of south Mumbai. Surwase told HT, the size of the godown and cost to construct it are yet to be determined. The city faced a severe dearth of space to store the machines earlier, leading to election officials often complaining about the EVMs' poor performance when they get wrecked from dampness. That's the reason why it was deemed fit to allocate the land in Wadala, people in the know told HT. According to the city's development plan (DP-2034) which was inked in 2018, the proposed land parcel was reserved for rehabilitation and resettlement of project affected people, or a depot for BEST or to be left as a natural area. In 2021, the then collector of Mumbai city district and the chief electoral officer wrote to the Urban Development Department (UDD) to renegotiate the reservation of the natural area for a 3846 sq-metre plot, and facilitate it for the warehouse to store EVM and VVPAT machines. The original salt pan plot was de-reserved last week. Throwing light on the use of the warehouse, an official from the Election Commission said, 'Political parties have made it fashionable to blame EVMs at times of defeat. Earlier, Shiv Sena and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) blamed the machines, and now Opposition parties have taken the plunge. Many leaders also file election petitions. During the last assembly elections, in Mumbai, we had to hold back EVMs of Mumbai North West Parliamentary constituency as Amol Kirtikar of Shiv Sena (UBT) lost narrowly and filed election petition. Huge space is required to stock the machines. Once each district has its own godown and proper security is put in place, the allegations of tampering will go away completely.' Plans are also afoot to replicate the process in the Mumbai suburban district (Bandra-Dahisar and Sion-Mulund). The EVMs here are stacked in a godown of Food Corporation of India, in Borivili, and the Maharashtra Agro Industries Development Corporation, in Goregaon. A senior official in the know of things, from the suburban collectorate, said: 'We have asked for a plot next to the Mumbai city collectorate's godown at Wadala or a plot next to the veterinary college in Goregaon, owned by state animal husbandry department. The Mumbai suburban district needs a plot of at least four acres for a godown, which would cost at least ₹60 crore to build. As the budget is huge, the plan is on hold.' Thane collector Ashok Shingare said, a similar godown has been planned in Kalwa. 'We have 18 assembly segments and a large number of EVMs. We had a meeting with CEO Chokalingham recently and have asked the Public Works Department (PWD) to draw a plan,' said Shingare.
