J-K National Panthers Party leader alleges 'non-functional' EVMs issue; minor error, say officials

Jammu, Oct 1 (PTI) Jammu and Kashmir National Panthers Party (JKNPP) leader Harsh Dev Singh raked up the issue of "non-functional" EVMs as certified by engineers during their checking and verification for the Chenani assembly constituency in Udhampur district of J-K, prompting authorities to rebut the claim, saying it was a minor clock error with no bearing on poll data.

Amid tight security arrangements, the checking and verification of EVMs of the Chenani assembly constituency took place on September 18 as passed, after a demand from a candidate who had unsuccessfully contested last year's assembly polls on this seat.

Singh claimed three EVMs turned out to be non-functional, which had been certified by engineers. This, he said, confirmed the unreliability of the poll process.

"Three EVMs of the constituency were found defective during the checking and recounting process. Besides, votes of one ballot unit were counted despite the ECI (Election Commission of India) having marked it as rejected and defunct," he alleged.

He said that as several EVMs failed the diagnostic test, the testing officers flagged them as non-functional and corrupted.

According to the certificate, the engineers, including Electronics Corporation of India Limited, certified three EVMs as "non-functional".

However, district electoral officials termed the problem a "minor clock issue" that had no bearing on the poll data.

"It was a minor clock issue. There was no impact on poll data, which is very much intact. The machines are functional," Udhampur District Election Officer (DEO) Saloni Rai told PTI.

Another official connected with the verification process said that such a tag was only on the casing of one EVM, and the machine itself was functional. "A minor clock issue is a technical matter and does not affect voting," the official said.

On September 10, Rai had facilitated the conduct of checking and verification of EVMs in the Chenani assembly segment, which the ECI later declared as passed.

Singh also alleged that the Election Commission was collaborating with the BJP to commit irregularities.

The inspection of the EVMs was carried out on September 18 in accordance with an order of the Jammu and Kashmir High Court, after Singh alleged that defective machines had been used in Chenani and sought annulment of the result.

Singh, a former minister, lost the seat to his cousin and BJP candidate Balwant Singh Mankotia by a margin of over 15,000 votes in the Chenani assembly segment.

He has demanded that the results of the Chenani assembly election in 2024 be declared null and void, accusing at least 19 respondents, including the chief election commissioner of India, of widespread electoral law violations and misconduct during the election process. PTI AB KSS KSS