New Delhi, December 9: As the first phase of 2017 Gujarat Assembly elections kick-started on Saturday, reports of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) malfunctioning hit the polling stations of Rajkot, Surat and different parts of the poll-bound state. While 70 EVMs were reported faulty in Surat’s Varaccha, a Patel-dominated area, technical errors were reported in 35 machines in Rajkot constituency.
Various complaints of EVM malfunctioning were registered with the poll panel in the first phase of Gujarat polls. Senior Congress leader from Porbandar, Arjun Modhwadia alleged that Porbandar’s Sharda Mandir booth number 145, 146 and 147 EVMs are connected to other devices through Bluetooth/wi-fi.
A Congress candidate from Pardi also filed a complaint with the EC for a Voter Verification Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) not showing the paper slip while voting.
Reacting to the reports, senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel said, “Wherever there are complaints of EVM malfunctioning, it should be dealt with immediately.”
