Polls: EVM glitches reported in several parts of Delhi

New Delhi: Complaints about malfunctioning EVMs poured in from several places in the national capital on Sunday where voting is underway.

Adarsh Gupta, a resident of Matia Mahal area, claimed that at polling booths 84, 85 and 86, electronic voting machines were not working in the morning.

Aam Aadmi Party's Malviya Nagar MLA Somnath Bharti alleged that EVMs at booths 116, 117 and 122 were not functioning.

"EVM in booth 132, Hauzrani is showing 50 votes without anyone casting any vote in the machine n EVMs at booths 116,117, 122 in Malviya nagar not functioning," Bharti tweeted. Delhi Chief Electoral Officer Ranbir Singh said 5.5 per cent EVMs were replaced in the morning, adding that problems in EVMs were reported from Chandni Chowk and West Delhi.

"Mock polls happened in the morning and where machines were found defective, they were replaced. 5.5 per cent EVMs were replaced during morning hours and that might have caused delay in start of polling," Singh said.

A senior police official, posted at Nirman Bhawan polling booth, said there was a complaint about EVM malfunctioning which was replaced with another one.

"There was connection error between control unit and ballot unit at Nirman Bhawan. That is why control unit, ballot unit and VVPAT of EVM had to be replaced," said an official of the poll body.

An EVM consists of a ballot unit, a control unit and a VVPAT. At a press conference on Friday, Delhi CEO SIngh said that 25,146 ballot units, 13,819 control units and 13,819 VVPATs were to be used for the polls.

The Voter-Verified Paper Audit Trail system enables an EVM to record each vote cast by generating a slip.

Mudit Agarwal, son of Congress's Chandni Chowk candidate JP Agarwal, alleged EVMs malfunctioned at a few booths in Matia Mahal and Ballimaran assembly segments.

According to a police official, they received information about an EVM not working at Begum Pur in Rohini but the issue was addressed.

AAP's Tilak Nagar MLA Jarnail Singh alleged that EVMs at polling booth number 27 were not working in the morning.

"At Prithivi Park in Tilak Nagar assembly segment, EVMs had not been working since 7 am at polling booth 27. It is the area where AAP has a substantial vote bank," Jarnail Singh said. He said the Election Commission claimed that faulty EVMs are changed within ten minutes, but at ground level it's a different story.

Voters upset as their names missing in list

NEW DELHI: Mohammad Shokeen and twelve members of his family could not cast their votes on Sunday as their names were missing from voter's list despite the fact they have been living at same address in Delhi for 32 years.

The 68-year-old, who lives with his family in South Delhi's Sangam Vihar D Block, is not alone, but there are many people like them who could not exercise their franchise in this Lok Sabha election.

"This is not acceptable. We are the original residents of this area. We have not changed residence and have all documents. Nobody came to our house to gave us slips. We have been voting for so many years," said a furious Shokeen.