Allow representatives of political parties while transporting EVMs to counting centres: Ahmed Patel

New Delhi [India], Dec 1 (ANI) Hours after he tweeted videos questioning the safety of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) and alleging foul play, senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel said that the Election Commission should allow representatives of all political parties while transporting EVMs to the counting centres from strong rooms and review conduct of officials in certain districts to ascertain their complicity in any wrong doing.
"I am submitting 4 suggestions to Election Commission ahead of Chattisgarh counting. 1) Kindly allow representatives of all political parties while transporting EVM's to counting centres from strong rooms. 2) Cross check if postal ballots were received from eligible voters. 3) Review conduct of top officials in 3 districts -- Rajnandgaon, Kondagaon and Bilaspur, and 4) Initiate second round of counting only after completion of first round. I hope EC will implement these suggestions in letter and spirit," Patel said in a series of Tweets.
Patel had earlier on Saturday alleged EVM tampering attempts were on in Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh and urged EC to investigate. "Sensing a defeat in Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, some are indulging in desperate measures by attempting to tamper with EVM's in strong rooms. Urge the EC to investigate and take concrete action," Patel tweeted.
Patel also posted a CCTV video on Twitter where two men can be seen carrying two boxes to the strong rooms, where EVMs are kept after the voting. He also posted a video of a bus packed with EVMs.
Congress leader PL Punia on Saturday met the Election Commission in Delhi and urged to ensure a secured counting process and firm security measures for EVMs in Chhattisgarh. Punia said that some unidentified persons with laptops and mobiles were seen around the strong room which is not allowed.
"As voting is over in Chhattisgarh, we've suggested Election Commission to ensure a secured counting process and firm security measures for EVMs and strong room, as unidentified persons with laptops and mobiles were seen around the strong room which is not allowed," Punia said.
On Friday, Congress and Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) workers protested outside the strong room in Satna after a viral video showed an unknown person taking a carton inside the highly protected area. The workers claimed that the Bharatiya Janata Party(BJP)-led state government was trying to tamper the EVMs. However, the district administration has denied all the charges and stated that the EVMs were under the supervision of security personnel.
Madhya Pradesh went for voting on November 28 while elections in Chhattisgarh were held on November 12 and 20. The counting of votes will take place on December 11 in both states. (ANI)