AMN
Blaming misuse of Electronic Voting Machines EVMs in just concluded Urban Local Bodies, ULB Polls, all major non BJP opposition parties in Uttar Pradesh, have demanded that all elections in the future be held through ballot papers.
Bahujan Samaj Party, BSP, chief Mayawati today accused that BJP’s win in ULB’s election is due to misuse of EVMs and threw an open challenge to hold the 2019 Lok Sabha polls using ballot papers. Samajwadi Party State Unit President Naresh Uttam and party’s spokesperson Rajendra Chaudhary alleged that the EVMs were misused to win mayoral contests and reiterated the demand that ballot paper be used in the future elections. In a tweet, Party’s national president Akhilesh Yadav also said, BJP has only won 15 per cent seats in Ballot paper areas, and 46 per cent in EVM areas.
The BJP has won 14 of the total 16 mayoral seats. The BSP managed to bag two mayoral seats of Aligarh and Meerut but the Samajwadi Party and the Congress drew a blank.
The Congress also compared the performance of the ruling party where elections were held through EVMs with those where ballot papers were used. Senior Congress leader Deepak Singh said at Lucknow that the results itself explain that the BJP’s mandate in the urban local body elections had decreased, while the vote share of the Congress had gone up. Aam Adami Party spokesperson Sanjay Singh has also blamed the EVMs misuse behind the success of ruling party’ victory.
The BJP, however, termed the allegations as baseless and eyewash. State BJP chief Mahendra Nath Pandey said, opposition parties were indulging in propaganda only to hide their disappointment following the electoral losses. In a statement issued at Lucknow that voters have given their support to the policies of the government.
BJP candidates have won maximum seats of Mayor and Chairman in Municipal Corporations and Nagar Palika Parishads. In Nagar Panchayats independent nominees have out shined the political parties. BJP has won 70 posts of Nagar Palika Parishad Chairman posts out of 198. Samajwadi party has won 45 seats.
