NEW DELHI: In a departure from its earlier stand, Trinamool Congress (TMC) on Monday asserted that there is nothing “substantial” in the allegations of manipulation of the Electronic Voting Machines (EVM).
In 2019, West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee had demanded return of ballot papers in place of the EVMs and announced that she would launch a campaign to bring back the ballot papers.
Contradicting the previous statement, TMC general secretary Abhishek Banerjee told reporters on Monday that his “opinion was that those raising questions on EVMs should show a demo of its discrepancies to the Election Commission (EC).
The remarks were seen as a criticism to the Congress and other Opposition parties that have been raising concerns over alleged manipulation of EVMs in Maharashtra and Haryana assembly polls. Congress has earlier demanded abolishing the EVMs and holding elections with ballot papers.
Abhishek Banerjee said that those who have complaints should do a “demo” instead of making statements.
“They should show any video to the EC. The EC even called everyone. I have been conducting elections on the ground for a long time. If someone works well during EVM randomisation and the booth workers check EVMs during mock polls or review form 17C, which is used to check ballot units or control units, during counting of votes, I don’t think there is anything substantial in these allegations of EVM manipulation,” he said.
“If someone still feels that EVMs can be hacked, then they should meet the Election Commission and show how the EVMs can be hacked,” Abhishek Banerjee added.