Bengaluru, Sep 11 (IANS) The Karnataka government is contemplating bringing an ordinance to introduce ballot papers instead of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) in local body elections. The decision on this matter is likely to be taken in the cabinet meeting scheduled for Thursday.
Home Minister G. Parameshwara has confirmed that the issue of using ballot papers instead of EVMs will be discussed in the cabinet meeting. “We will provide further information in this regard once it is discussed in the cabinet meeting. There will be a discussion on the ballot ordinance,” he stated.
Reacting to the development, Deputy Chief Minister and State Congress President D.K. Shivakumar stated, “The BJP had enacted legislation providing for the conduct of elections through ballot papers when they were in power in the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP). There is a provision for conducting elections through ballot papers in the bylaws of the Election Commission. It is their own policy. When the Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) Act was formulated, I followed the same approach as the BJP. Hence, there is nothing wrong in using ballot papers for local body elections.”
“The Law Minister has sent a proposal in this regard. Whatever the Election Commission feels is appropriate, we will go by that,” he added.
The state government has sent a proposal in this regard to the State Election Commission. Sources stated that, to introduce ballot papers, certain legislative amendments are needed. In this context, the state government is considering introducing ballot papers instead of EVMs by bringing an ordinance. The other option available is to wait until the winter session to pass the necessary amendments and send them to the Governor.
Since there is a chance that the Governor may reject the amendments, the Congress-led government has decided to bring an ordinance to introduce ballot papers in local body elections. Sources in the government confirmed that the leadership is determined to replace EVMs with ballot papers in Zilla Panchayat and Taluk Panchayat elections, as well as elections to about 400 wards of the Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA).
Earlier, coming down heavily on the Congress-led government for deciding to bring amendment to use ballot papers instead of EVMs in the upcoming localy body polls in the state, Karnataka BJP said, “By deciding to replace EVM machines with ballot papers in the upcoming local body elections, the Congress-led government in Karnataka has itself admitted that it came to power in the state through electoral fraud.”
BJP State President and MLA B.Y. Vijayendra stated, “In this context, the 136 Congress MLAs who were elected in the 2023 state elections through EVMs should first resign. The nine Congress MPs elected to the Lok Sabha from Karnataka should also resign. They should contest again and win using ballot papers. Otherwise, they must admit that they have come to power through election fraud.”
“Congressmen should revisit history. The highest number of complaints regarding bogus voting, election fraud, poll violence, and electoral malpractices filed in courts across the country were from elections held through ballot papers, and most of them were against Congress itself. People of this country have not forgotten that former PM late Indira Gandhi imposed Emergency on the nation because of the court verdict against her election, which was tainted with fraud and malpractice,” he said.
Earlier, State Election Commissioner G.S. Sangreshi stated, “There is nothing wrong in conducting elections using ballot papers, and we are ready to make preparations in this regard.”
Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has said that it is the objective of his government to conduct elections using ballot papers instead of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs), and that the decision has been taken based on their experience. He was speaking to the media in Bengaluru on Friday. The Chief Minister also stated that many countries which had earlier adopted EVMs have now returned to conducting elections through ballot papers.
–IANS
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