Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar.
New Delhi:
The capability to reward or see the positives is on a decline, famous Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Rajiv Kumar, including that the development of criticism (ninda ras), however, is on the rise. The remark comes within the backdrop of the Opposition’s questions over the voting machines.
Speaking on the NDTV ‘Indian of the Year Awards 2024’ on Friday, Mr Kumar mentioned although conducting the elections might be logistically difficult, the voters of the nation are able to resolving all points in a peaceable method.
“What surprises me, positively, is the resilience of the Indian voter… this nation can resolve all its points peacefully via the poll, not the bullet… This is the largest satisfaction,” he mentioned.
As a number of polling personnel had been honoured with the NDTV ‘Indian of the Year Awards 2024’, Mr Kumar mentioned it’s the “presiding officers who maintain the democracy alive”.
“There are 10,50,000 cubicles within the nation. Each sales space contains round 4 to 5 presiding officers. This makes it round 50,00,000 fellows. And who’re these folks? You’ve seen them – they’re lecturers, Anganwadi employees, officers from the agricultural division… individuals are pooled from numerous departments,” the CEC mentioned.
He mentioned all the nation’s workforce is on the service of the ballot fee throughout the elections. “We are a crew of 500-600 folks within the fee. During the elections, we change into 15 million…,” he mentioned.
The high official of the polling physique defined how the presiding officers are “randomly” deputed to varied polling cubicles throughout the nation, within the presence of political social gathering leaders and their brokers, to keep away from allegations of bias.
“The world’s highest polling station is in Himachal Pradesh. In the other south, there may be one other enormous a part of India… within the west, you’ve the desert, and within the east, you’ve the wettest place on this planet, the place we’ve the polling station. The machine (EVMs) works within the desert, beneath zero diploma temperatures, beneath moisture-laden situations… So lengthy as they (polling personnel) are there, Indian democracy is completely in protected arms and excellent,” he mentioned.
Opposition events have typically accused the ballot physique of bias and raised doubts over the functioning of voting machines. After shedding the Maharashtra elections final month, the Congress alleged lack of transparency within the electoral course of and manipulation of the voting machines.
The Supreme Court, not too long ago, disapproved of repeated doubts raised over the voting machines, berating the tendency of political events to boost doubts over their functioning every time they lose elections whereas conveniently accepting the system once they win.
Mr Kumar additionally lamented that regardless of efforts, voters in cities proceed to keep away from turning up at polling stations on election days. While Jammu & Kashmir, Manipur and Naxal-affected areas have witnessed excessive turnout, “folks in cities don’t vote”, he mentioned.
Despite a number of initiatives by the polling fee, voters in Bengaluru and Gurugram didn’t flip up in massive numbers on the cubicles, he added.
Colaba in Mumbai, Mr Kumar mentioned, registered the bottom turnout within the recently-held Maharashtra meeting elections. “But I’m positive, city apathy and youth apathy may even be taken care of in occasions to return,” he mentioned.