Assembly wise data was always available: Rajiv

We must complete the election in one month: Rajiv

When did we change the Form 17-C: Rajiv

The Election Commission of India (ECI) responded to allegations made by the opposition parties regarding not playing its role in the way it was expected of them. ECI Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar stated that there was a pattern to the allegations that were being levied. “Firstly, a complaint is made that the voter list is flawed. As the elections commenced, the issue of EVMs was raised. This could cause anarchy. It is a politically charged environment. It is the same pattern that was followed in 2019. The case came up 4 days before the 1st phase of Lok Sabha Elections. There was an accusation that we increased the voter turnout by 1 crore. The data is collected from the booth level. Assembly wise data was always available. The state wise data was not available. One can always calculate that. When did we change the Form 17-C,” Rajiv remarked. 

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The ECI displayed many of its achievements including a record in terms of cash seized and number of votes polled. He however admitted some of the shortcomings that have to be addressed heading into the future. “There are some learnings. We must complete the election in one month. This becomes crucial especially during high temperatures. We expected that there would be attacks from across the borders. There were however attacks from within as well. We should have been prepared to tackle these attacks,” Rajiv added.