Worried about rigging, RJD seeks list of voters above 80 or those fighting Covid from EC
The Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) on Saturday wrote a letter to the Election Commission of India (ECI), requesting that the ECI reveal names of those aged above 80 years and voters who are battling Covid-19 and provide a list to every political party.
Manoj Jha, Rajya Sabha MP and chief spokesperson of RJD said: "We have great apprehension that the ruling party could misuse it in its favour. As there is a big chance of rigging of votes, we have demanded such a list so that agents of every political party verify it at the time of casting votes."
According to ECI provisions, those above 80 or voters who are suffering from Covid need not visit the polling booth to exercise their franchise. The ECI will provide them ballot papers at their doorstep or in hospitals.
"We have also requested the ECI to provide an attested copy of total votes cast at every booth on the polling day. As per our experience in last few years, there is a scope of rigging in it," he said.
"Hence, we want to match the votes cast in EVMs with verified number of votes by polling agents at every booth. In the case of mismatch, votes verified by polling agents must be considered as final," added Jha.
"As the ECI is an independent body and known for conducting fair elections, we expect it will look after these points and address our apprehensions," Jha further said.