It has to be doubted whether there were concerted efforts behind the widespread malfunctioning of voting machines in some places in the second stage of local elections. Instead of blaming the district administration and officials for machines malfunctioning, what needs to be done is to conduct a detailed enquiry.
It is the first time electronic voting machine is used in the three-tier election in the state.
In the 2010 civic polls, machines were used for voting only in corporations and municipalities, The reason was that only one vote had to be cast in corporations and municipalities. Since three votes had to be cast to elect village panchayat, block panchayat and district panchayat bodies, voting machines with three units were needed in panchayats.
Then elections to three-tier panchayats were held using ballot papers. But, in this election, machines with three units were used for voting in panchayats for the first time. However, widespread malfunctioning of voting machines was reported in Malappuram and Thrissur districts.
It cannot be said that this happened because of the lack of familiarity in using machines for the first time or due to the failure of officials because widespread training was given to officials and voters before using voting machines.
The first stage of polling in seven districts got over without much issues.
Only in the second stage, snags were reported in some districts.
It is hard to believe that this happened because of the technical fault of the machines. Voting started in booths on Thursday after mock polling was held successfully in the morning. This proves that there were no malpractices in places where machines were stored. Machines failed in most places only after voting started. The district administration and officials are not responsible for this.
Someone must have done this with the intention of disrupting voting. The fact that officials and agents cannot see what the voter does inside the booth lends credence to this doubt. The move to sabotage the election by tampering voting machines must be probed.
(The writer is a former State Election Commissioner.)
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