As the Indian National Congress (INC) got an edge in the Karnataka Assembly elections, there is a wave of happiness among the party workers from Delhi to Bengaluru. Party workers are celebrating their leads in the southern state by distributing sweets and dancing to the drum beats near the party offices. However, as soon as it gained the lead, Congress comfortably went silent on its allegations against EVMs, which it had made before the counting of votes.
Notably, Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra offered prayers to Lord Hanuman at the historic Jakhu Temple in Himachal Pradesh. In the Karnataka elections, the issue of Bajrang Bali had gained prominence, as the Congress in its manifesto had talked about banning the Bajrang Dal.
On May 8, 2023, two days before the elections in Karnataka, the Congress wrote a letter to the Election Commission. In his letter, the party had expressed concern about the EVMs used in South Africa which they claimed were also used in the Karnataka assembly elections. The party had sought an explanation from the Election Commission in this regard.
Responding to the allegations of the Congress, the Election Commission had said that all the EVMs used in the Karnataka elections are new and that the Congress also knows this very well. The Commission said that whenever the EVMs are brought, the entire process is videographed and people from every political party are invited there as eyewitnesses.
Dismissing the allegations of the Congress party, the Election Commission of India said, “The Congress knows very well where the EVMs came from. The Congress has been a national party for so long and has participated in various elections. Congress is expected to be aware of the Election Commission’s protocols.”
The ECI added, “Not only are the representatives of various parties called and shown where the EVMs came from, but they are also given a list of the unique IDs of the EVMs. Not only this, EVMs are randomly checked before assembling them. Once it is turned on, it is then checked in the presence of party representatives.”
As the Modi government was voted to power at the Center in 2014 and the way the BJP grew after that, the opposition parties have always cried foul about EVMs. Sometimes they accuse BJP of EVM hacking, sometimes of tampering EVMs, and sometimes of manipulating EVMs.
In concurrence with its decade-old strategy, Congress started crying about the EVMs even before the results. Had the BJP got an edge in the Karnataka elections, Congress would have been shouting from the rooftops once again over the issue. However, as Congress has secured a lead in the state and that too beyond the majority figure during the early phases of counting only, it has comfortably forgotten its allegations over EVMs.
