Karnataka Election: Congress' Brijesh Kalappa alleged faulty EVM at RMV II Stage polling booth.
Highlights
- Congress's Brijesh Kalappa tweeted about complaints of faulty EVMs
- Any button pressed registers a vote only to kamal ke phool, he tweeted
- He said the party would take up the issue with the Election Commission
The ruling Congress in Karnataka alleged that Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) had malfunctioned in parts of the state as voting took place across 222 constituencies on Saturday.
Voting was delayed for two hours at a polling booth in Banahatti, allegedly because the voting machine was faulty.
Brijesh Kalappa, Congress spokesperson, posted a series of tweets on complaints of faulty EVMs and said the party would take it up with the Election Commission.
Voters started queuing up early at polling stations, perhaps fearing warmer weather later in the day. State BJP chief and party's chief ministerial candidate BS Yeddyurappa was among the first politicians to vote in the Karnataka polls. Former Prime Minister HD Deve Gowda voted in Hassan.
Yesterday, the Election Commission deferred voting in Rajarajeswari Nagar constituency in Bengaluru over the discovery of nearly 10,000 voter IDs at a flat. The BJP has alleged that this is proof the Congress was attempting to manipulate the Karnataka election.
Voting had earlier been put off at the Jayanagara seat in Bengaluru after the death of the BJP candidate.
Around five crore people are eligible to vote in the Karnataka polls, where pollsters have predicted a close fight between the Congress of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and its main challenger, the BJP. The Janata Dal Secular of HD Deve Gowda hopes to win enough seats to make a difference if predictions of a hung assembly prove correct.
The results for the Karnataka election will be declared on Tuesday.