INDIA bloc to file its petition in Supreme Court against 'EVM tampering' in Maharashtra

The INDIA bloc is set to file a petition in the Supreme Court by Friday, challenging alleged irregularities in election procedures and the Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) in Maharashtra.

The INDIA bloc's decision to approach the Supreme Court against the Election Commission was announced by Prashant Jagtap, leader of the Sharad Pawar NCP faction, who contested and lost the assembly elections from the Hadapsar seat in Pune.

The announcement came after a high-level meeting involving NCP(SP) chief Sharad Pawar, AAP convenor Arvind Kejriwal, and senior Congress leader and noted lawyer Abhishek Singhvi.

During the meeting, the leaders deliberated on the alliance's legal strategy to challenge alleged irregularities in election procedures and EVM protocols.

Prashant Jagtap highlighted a key



grievance, alleging that names of voters were deleted and added in Maharashtra until three days before polling day. "We have data to back our claim," Jagtap said, emphasising the seriousness of the alleged lapses.

The alliance has accused the ruling NDA of poll rigging during the Haryana and Maharashtra assembly elections, alleging that the process was manipulated to favour the government.

EVMs have been a contentious issue between the Opposition INDIA bloc and the NDA. The Opposition has on several occasions accused the BJP of poll rigging to get desired results.

A similar sentiment was expressed by the INDIA bloc after the results of the Haryana and the Maharashtra Assembly polls. The exit polls had predicted a sweeping mandate for the Opposition in Haryana. However, the BJP got 48 seats in the 90-member Assembly while the Congress could only muster 37.