HT Correspondent
DIMAPUR, May 11: Alleging EVM tampering since 2014, the Nagaland Pradesh Congress Committee (NPPC) has demanded VVPAT ballot paper voting in the coming Assembly elections in the state so that the voters can verify their casted vote.
Addressing a press conference at Congress Bhavan here on Tuesday, Pradesh Congress president K Therie said the NPCC will submit a memorandum to the Election Commission demanding the same.
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Therie also appealed to all political parties to support the demand for transparency in voting and counting process.
He said the EVMs are not temper-free as claimed by the BJP leaders. “It can be reset and reused for polling. It is not one time programmable,” he added.
“They say it is temper-free but when you open it, you will find many faults,” he said. The service engineers from the manufacturing companies very well duplicate the EVMs, he stated.
He said the NPCC will go to the villagers during the election to explain to them how the EVMs can be tempered.
The NPCC chief said in the villages in the state, only two-three people vote in a polling station while other villagers are sent to the fields. This is done by the “intellectuals” not by the villagers, he said.
Alleging that 19 lakh EVMs have gone missing since 2014, Therie said these machines are found in the houses of the BJP leaders.
He said while the manufacturers have made 40 lakh EVMs, only 20 lakh of them are available. “Where are the remaining 20 lakh EVMs? What kind of theft are they trying to commit,” he asked.
Therie also claimed that in reality, only 12 to 14 lakh EVMs are required in the entire country.
He said he is also going to raise the issue in the coming chintan sivir of the Congress in Udaipur, Rajasthan.
On the use of muscle power and big money during elections in the state, Therie said: “We all must rise to correct these wrongs.”
Asked about the Naga political issue, Therie said the state government has not recognised the two agreements signed with the two Naga negotiating groups.
While the Naga national workers want a solution, the state government does not want it, he said.
“We have elected a government that does not want solution,” Therie added.
