LUCKNOW: Just a few hours before the counting of votes in UP, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav has shot off a letter to the Election Commission of India (ECI) seeking webcasting of the counting process which has to take place on Thursday.
The SP chief wrote the letter to the ECI a day after he leveled some serious allegations of the manipulation of voting machines in Varanasi. “The Samajwadi Party demands that for all constituencies, webcasting of the counting process be done and the link should be shared with the Election Commission, Chief Election Commissioner, polling officials, and political parties ... so that the political parties can watch the counting process live, and the process can be conducted in a transparent and independent manner,” said the letter written in Hindi.
Akhilesh Yadav, the president of the main opposition party locked in a tough battle with the BJP, had accused the ruling party on Tuesday of trying to "steal the votes" by manipulating EVMs (electronic voting machines). The SP chief had claimed that since his party candidate was winning the Ayodhya seat, the BJP got scared and asked the DM concerned to slow down the counting process. “Even Election Commission officials are tampering with the EVMs," Akhilesh Yadav had claimed.
However, the BJP registered a strong objection to the allegations and a party delegation visited the ECI on Wednesday to register their protest against the claims of SP chief.
In its letter, the Samajwadi Party on Wednesday referred to the webcasting for voting in some parts of the state. Earlier in the day, the party had shared a video claiming that the Varanasi divisional commissioner had seen "admitted lapse in the protocol" in the transport of EVMS. "There was a lapse in the protocol in the movement of electronic voting machines. But I can assure you that taking away voting machines is impossible. There is three-level security," Varanasi commissioner Deepak Agarwal is heard saying in the video.
On Tuesday, both the SP and ally SBSP had demanded the removal of the Varanasi district magistrate and SSP before the commencement of the counting process. They had even threatened to not let the counting begin till their demand was met. Akhilesh Yadav had also called upon his cadre to be prepared for the ‘Kranti’ (revolution) as it was the last chance to save the democracy in the country. He had even asked them to remain around the strong rooms across the state and be vigilant.
Hitting back at the claims, UP deputy CM Keshav Prasad Maurya had said: “A person who personifies the dynastic rule, talking about a revolution to save democracy is laughable. Only BJP is helping save democracy."
Rejecting Akhilesh Yadav's allegations, the state election commission had issued a statement clarifying: "Some political parties have brought to our attention that a few EVMs were being transported in a vehicle in Varanasi district. On investigation, it was found that these EVMs were meant for training purposes. These EVMs were being taken to training locations at a college on March 9, 2022, and were kept at a food grain warehouse."
The counting of votes for 403 constituencies in the state will be done on Thursday. Some exit polls have predicted a win for the BJP but exit polls often get it wrong.