Even as Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) SP has started its campaign against the Electronic Voting Machine (EVMs) in Maharashtra, the Congress is also planning to join the protest across the state demanding to get back to ballot papers.
Sharad Pawar, the Chief of the NCP-SP led from the front after he joined the protest against the EVMs on Sunday visuted Maharashtra’s Markadwadi village in Malshiras tehsil of Solapur district to speak to the residents who had earlier expressed their willingness to hold a re-election using ballot papers.
Now taking the cue from the NCP-SP president, who joined the protest of the villagers at an age of 83, Maharashtra Congress chief Nana Patole is also all set to join the protest at Markadwadi on Tuesday.
Senior leaders of Maharashtra Congress have been vocal about the EVMs after a massive defeat of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) in the recently concluded assembly polls as it was decimated to only 48 seats in the 288 member assembly.
The MVA leaders openly questioned the fairness of elections by raising questions on the EVMs.
A senior Maharashtra Congress leader told ITV network that Parole will be going to Markadwadi village over their stand and distrust against the authenticity of EVMs in their village during the assembly polls held on November 20.
The party leader said that even Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha and senior party leader Rahul Gandhi has been made aware of the developments in Maharashtra over the villagers showing distrust on EVMs.
When asked if Rahul Gandhi will visit the village in coming days, he said that as of now we have not got any communication from his team about his visit. “But in coming days it may be finalised,” the party leader added.
On December 3, 2024, the villagers of the Markadwadi village were to hold a re-election over their apprehension on distrust on the authenticity of the EVMs during the recently held State Assembly election.
The district t administration had imposed curfew in the village in view of holding elections on ballot paper. However, in view of curfew the re election using ballot papers was called off.
During his visit to the village on Sunday, Pawar thanked the villagessof showing right path to the country and assured them of his full support.
He also criticised the police action for registering case against 200 people and asked the villagers to give him his complaint so that he can raise the issue with the Prime Minister, Chief Minister and the Chief Electoral Officer to clear the doubts of the people on the fairness of the EVMs.
Even the MVA leaders had skipped the oath taking ceremony in Maharashtra assembly on the first day of special session of the Assembly over the alleged misuse of EVMs in the assembly polls.
Speaking to the media on the decision to not take oath on the first day of the special session, Shiv Sena UBT leader Aditya Thackeray had said that his party has decided to not take oath on the first day to protest on the misuse of the EVMs in the assembly polls.
“If this was the mandate of the people, people would have been happy and celebrated it, but people did not celebrate this victory anywhere. We have doubts about EVM,” Thackeray had said adding that his party has boycotted the oath-taking ceremony as “democracy is being murdered by the use of EVMs.”
Following the defeat in Maharashtra, where the Congress was reduced to 16 seats, it decided to start the signature campaign across the state to go back to traditional ballot papers.
