‘Repolling after rigged opinion polls meaningless’

The returning officer for Gurgaon parliamentary constituency, Shekhar Vidyarthi said on Tuesday that repolling will be held on 15 May at eight polling stations. The decision was taken after AAP’s candidate from Gurgaon, Yogendra Yadav, filed a complaint with the Election Commission of India, over alleged booth rigging in the constituency by rival candidates. Vidyarthi said that the re-poll will be held from 7.00 am to 6.00 pm.

Speaking to Millennium Post over the phone, Yogendra Yadav said, ‘This decision was taken at an unfair time and it is shocking that just two days before final counting, the EC has ordered for re-polling in eight booths. We had asked for the same on 11 April.’

He pointed out that unfair polling took place in 110 booths across Mewat and Rewari district. Yadav further claimed that AAP had provided evidence of booth capturing and rigging in the district to the EC. ‘It is a regular malpractice by some local politicians that goes on in some parts of Haryana, which often influence polling. Now media has shown exit and opinion polls, which will influence voters. I am disappointed that there will be re-polling at only eight booths located at Puhana, Sohna and Mewat district after a month. It is a belated and token reaction by the EC’, Yadav said. ‘However, we are thankful to the EC for considering our complaints’, Yadav added.

‘Re-polling will take place in one polling station each of Sohna and Punhana assembly segments and three each in Nuh and Ferozpur Jhirka assembly segments’, Vidyathi said. He also said that the Election Commission of India had declared polling held in these 8 booths on 10 April as void under various sections of the Representation of Peoples Act, 1951. Results from these polling stations will be announced on 16 May.

The EC’s direction came after these polling stations witnessed high ‘voter turnouts’ of above 95 per cent. For example, at booth number 126, out of 934 total votes, 906 cast their votes (97 %) and at booth number 90, out of 824 voters, 784 had cast their votes (95.15%). 

In order to observe fair voting this time, Yadav has planned visits to polling booths on Wednesday with his workers to check out security arrangements made by the district administration at Mewat and Rewari districts.