Shashi Tharoor Slams Poll Body's Silence; Says Issue Is With Election Machinery
In his first remark against the Election Commission (EC) over the Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs)’ accuracy, Congress leader Shashi Tharoor today, on November 28, slammed the poll body’s silence and urged it to answer questions that are being raised regarding the fairness of the electoral process.
In a strongly worded X post, he noted that it is the most serious issue to emerge from the Maharashtra elections, Thiruvananthapuram MP said he has never joined those who alleged that EVMs could be tampered with. While Tharoor defended the reliability of the EVMs, he expressed doubts over ‘not on the machine’ but the machinery of the electoral process, suspecting manipulation.
Read Also: Kharge Calls For Bharat Jodo Yatra-Like Movement For Ballot Paper Elections
“I believe they are a vast improvement on paper ballots and that’s why they were brought in to our elections. However, whether entire EVM machines could be added to the count , dramatically inflating voter turnout figures, is another issue altogether. The charges made here raise serious and legitimate questions that @ECISVEEP,” the Congress leader said.
The MP further said that the poll body’s silence on the subject was “baffling and discredits the entire process that supports and legitimises the democracy. “Of course, paper ballots are still not the answer: if illegitimate EVMs could be added to the count, so could illegitimate ballot-boxes stuffed with false votes. It’s not the *machines* that are the issue, but the *machinery* of the electoral process,” the MP wrote, urging the reminding the EC of its constitutional duty to set the public’s minds at rest on the issues being raised.
However, Tharoor’s comment comes days after Congress chief outrightly rejected EVMs while declaring Bharat Jodo like movement for return to the ballot paper.
Several questions have been raised about EVMs suspecting the legitimacy of the Maharashtra election result in the recent days. The recently published The Wire report had pointed out the alleged counting of additional votes in some constituencies that they polled. The media house has revealed another discrepancy on Wednesday, noting that when polls closed at 5.00 p.m. on the 20th, the turnout was 58.22%. However, by 11.30 p.m. on the same day, after accommodating people presumably waiting in the queue to vote at 5.00 pm, the turn out increased to 65.02%. Moreover, the turn out was put at 66.05% hours before the counting started on November 23. Thus, the turnout increased by 7.83% after polls closed at 5.00 p.m.
This is the most serious issue to emerge from the Maharashtra elections. I have never joined those who alleged that EVMs could be tampered with; I believe they are a vast improvement on paper ballots and that’s why they were brought in to our elections. However, whether entire… https://t.co/KWXZY9gBwM
— Shashi Tharoor (@ShashiTharoor) November 28, 2024
