Mumbai, Dec 2 (IANS): The Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA) will launch a state-wide, fortnight-long campaign opposing Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) and demanding a return to ballot paper polling, a top party leader said here on Monday.
VBA President Prakash Ambedkar said that the campaign will kickstart with a massive signature drive in Maharashtra from December 3-16, and later the movement will be gradually intensified in the coming months.
"In the recent state Assembly elections, there have been many complaints against the EVMs and questions are being raised about the fairness and transparency in the election process. We appeal to the masses to support our action and join the campaign in full force," urged Ambedkar.
He pointed out that the movement against EVMs was launched by him 20 years ago (2004) though public awareness programmes, media conferences, and in the courts, and it is now being taken up in a big way after the state Assembly elections of November 2024.
Accordingly, VBA local party activists, office-bearers and its allies shall troop out on the roads to collect the signatures from the masses to seek a return to the old ballot paper voting system that was phased out in favour of EVMs, said a party leader in Mumbai.
"There have been many objections against EVMs, malpractices, rigging of votes, complaints that the peoples' votes are not going to the intended party/candidate and other manipulations that have raised suspicions in public minds over the efficiency and credibility of the EVMs," he said.
Soon after the poll results were announced on November 23, almost all Opposition parties, including Maha Vikas Aghadi's Congress-Nationalist Congress Party-Shiv Sena (UBT), Communist Party of India (Marxist), Prahar Janshakti Party, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena, Bahujan Vikash Aghadi and the VBA, have raised questions on the results that gave a landslide victory to the MahaYuti alliance of Shiv Sena-Bharatiya Janata Party-Nationalist Congress Party.
Top leaders like Sharad Pawar, Uddhav Thackeray, Nana Patole, Supriya Sule, Jayant R. Patil, M. Arif Naseem Khan, Priyanka Chaturvedi, Sanjay Raut, Clyde Crasto, Kishore Tiwari, Ashok Dhawale, Bachhu Kadu, Raj Thackeray and many more have spoken out strongly against EVMs.
On Saturday, a 96-year-old social worker, Dr. Babasaheb Pandurang Adhav, alias Baba Adhav ended a three-day-long hunger strike demanding that ballot papers be brought back to infuse transparency into the poll process and provide 'proof' of voting, "in order to save the Constitution and democracy".
Around 22 defeated candidates from across political parties have lodged complaints alleging malpractices in the polls with Maharashtra State Election Commission (M-SEC) and demanded recounting of votes cast.
Last week, the Congress also announced a state-wide anti-EVM campaign starting with signature drives and said that these would be sent to the President, Prime Minister and Election Commission of India.