CHENNAI: DMK president MK Stalin on Friday submitted a representation with the Election Commission of India (ECI) over the alle ged lapse of securi t y arrangements in the strongroom where electronic voting machines (EVMs) are kept and urged to take necessary steps to ensure fair security to the voting machines. Stalin submitted the representation to Chief Election Commissioner Sushil Chandra, and Satyabrata Sahoo, the Chief Electoral Officer of Tamil Nadu.
The DMK chief stated that as per the instructions issued by the Commission, “no vehicle, including that of any official or ministers or any other political functionary, should be allowed inside the secured campus, where the EVMs are stored. Alighting points for vehicles should be marked clearly, ahead of the outer security perimeter itself, beyond which it should be a pedestrian zone only.” Despite the instructions, there is a total lack of protocol in many strongrooms in campuses across the State, where the polled EVMs are stored – hopefully safe, he added.
He cited some incidents such as covered vehicles allegedly having been brought inside the premises housing strongrooms at GCT in Coimbatore, Sriram Engineering College in Perumalpattu, Thiruvallur, and Loyola College, Chennai, where the EVMs for various Assembly constituencies have been stored and the officers reasoning them to be “mobile toilets” meant for women police constables despite the colleges possessing enough toilet facilities. In addition, Stalin mentioned the incident of a group reportedly entering a strongroom in a campus in Ramanathapuram with two laptops.
Commotion had erupted at the University College of Engineering, a vote counting centre in the district, after DMK cadre claimed that 31 teachers of the college gained “unauthorised entry” to the premises on Thursday. They termed the incident a “breach of security” arranged for the four strongrooms on the premises. District Election Officer Dinesh Ponraj Oliver, however, told TNIE: “The teachers went to the college to arrange for a few online classes.
Nevertheless, alternative arrangements will be made for them as party cadre have raised objection to their entry.” Stalin, however, claimed that similar incidents occurred in various strongroom premises across the State. He further urged the ECI to take steps to ensure complete safety and security of all the EVMs of the 234 Assembly constituencies – both manually and electronically – without any damage, hacking or tampering in any manner. He also appealed not to allow any unauthorised persons in the vicinity of strongrooms, and to deactivate all WiFi connections in and around such places.