Kerala elections: Congress alleges widespread irregularities in postal voting

By Express News Service
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Soon after the disclosure of pretend votes within the electoral rolls printed for the meeting elections, Opposition chief Ramesh Chennithala on Monday alleged that there have been additionally widespread irregularities within the casting of postal votes within the elections. The casting of postal ballots by absentee voters — electors who’re above 80, individuals with disabilities and COVID-19-positive and quarantined electors — has begun within the state. The listing of postal voters has names of those that died and people who haven’t utilized for postal votes, he alleged.

For occasion, round 10 voters who had died figured within the postal voters listing in Thiruvananthapuram central and Congress candidate within the constituency V S Sivakumar has submitted a grievance to the Election Commission. The postal ballots will not be collected in sealed poll containers and never stored in robust rooms. Further, the locations the place the postal ballots are being saved now don’t have any CCTVs and MLAs have already pointed that Left service organisations have been attempting to sabotage the mandate, he stated.

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“The police association has clearly intervened in the casting of postal votes of policemen. There were directions from the association that the casting of votes should be shot on mobile phone and forwarded to association leaders. This is not the right practice in a democracy and I have complained to the state police chief,” he stated.

He additionally alleged that irregularities within the electoral rolls helped the Left script a thumping victory within the native physique elections as widespread unlawful votes had been forged within the polls. The CPM has designed a plan to forged large unlawful votes this time as nicely, he alleged.

Meanwhile, the Kerala High Court on Monday directed the Election Commission to take steps to make sure that voters having their names entered in a number of constituencies forged just one vote within the Assembly polls. The courtroom issued the interim order on a petition filed by Chennithala looking for to restrain pretend and a number of entry voters from taking part within the April 6 elections.