BJD demands high-level inquiry into alleged discrepancies in voter turnout numbers
The regional party highlighted that 18 out of 21 Lok Sabha seats in Odisha were impacted by inconsistencies in voter turnout numbers and alleged unholy nexus between BJP and Election Commission of India
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| Photo Credit: KUMAR SS
The Biju Janata Dal (BJD) on Friday (August 9, 2024) demanded a high-level inquiry into alleged discrepancies in voter turnout numbers in the general elections 2024 as highlighted by election watchdogs Association of Democratic Reforms (ADR) and Vote for Democracy (VfD).
The BJD claimed that 18 out of 21 Lok Sabha seats were impacted by discrepancies in voter turnout statistics.
Addressing a press conference, Lekhashree Samantsinghar, BJD spokesperson, said, “The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) claims to uphold the Constitution. However, analysis of recent elections suggests that the BJP has tried to win by subverting constitutional principles and has succeeded in doing so. In 2019, the BJP secured only eight Lok Sabha seats. The party’s unexpected victory in 20 out of 21 seats in 2024 elections surprised many. The BJD, which had won 12 seats in 2019, failed to win a single seat this time, leading to growing mistrust among the public.”
“We as a responsible political party had accepted the 2024 results. However, ADR and VfD reports suggest there was discrepancy with regards to 5 crore votes between day of poll and counting of votes in the last election. It raised a question mark as to how the political party won the election,” said Ms. Samantsinghar.
She said, “as per the report, there were some kinds of inconsistencies in votes with regards to 538 Lok Sabha seats. These discrepancies had impacted results of 79 Lok Sabha seats. Had there been no inconsistency, there would have been a new government at Centre. As many as 18 out of 21 Lok Sabha seats in Odisha have been impacted.”
“We were told that Electronic Voting Machines cannot be hacked. Since 2019 there was galore of allegations. It had also reached Supreme Court. But the apex court is not able to deliver final verdict for different reasons. However, there are legitimate concerns about tampering of EVM machines,” said BJD spokesperson.
The BJD said the Election Commission of India was unable to deposit Form 17(C), which were duly signed by presiding officers on the day of polling, and during random checks, there were also discrepancies between numbers on Voter verifiable paper audit trail (VVPAT) and those of EVMs.
“It shows that irregularities had taken place in election and irregularities favoured BJP. The ruling party had performed better in States like Odisha and Andhra Pradesh where they were not so strong. The BJP had strangulated the Constitution. There is unholy nexus between BJP and Election Commission of India,” said Ms. Samantsinghar.
The BJD said “people were voting in certain ways, yet the results were coming out differently. There is nothing more painful than that.”
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Biju Janata Dal
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Orissa
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General Elections 2024