Guwahati: A viral video depicting a polling agent allegedly casting five votes in favour of the BJP candidate on an Electronic Voting Machine (EVM) inside a polling station has stirred a controversy, with Karimganj Election Officer clarifying it to be a video recorded during a “mock poll” before voting began.
The widely circulated footage has brought the conduct of the on-duty polling officials under the scanner. The incident occurred at polling station no.11, 240 no. Nayadhar LP School in Patharkandi. Despite being designated as mock poll, the act of filming the process has raised concerns regarding the secrecy of the electoral process, prompting the Election Officer to issue a show cause notice to the involved polling officials.
The polling agent captured in the viral video has been identified as Abdul Sahid, representing independent candidate, Abdul Hameed. Following the incident, presiding officer, Nazrul Haque Tapadar, and the polling team posted at Nayadhar LP School were summoned by the District Election Officer to submit their statements.
Upon investigation, it was revealed that the video was recorded during the routine mock poll conducted prior to the official polling as part of the standard procedure to ensure the integrity of the electoral process. EVMs are reset to zero before the commencement of actual polling.
According to a statement issued by the District Election Officer, polling agents are permitted to cast a limited number of test votes during the mock poll to verify the functionality of the EVMs. However, questions arise as to why the polling agent of an independent candidate allegedly voted for the BJP. “Upon receiving this complaint, the matter was addressed during scrutiny in the presence of the general observer, candidates, and election agents at 11 am on April 27. The polling team was interrogated, and according to the statement provided by the presiding officer, Nazrul Haque Tapadar, librarian (Taltala High School), the video in question was recorded during the mock poll and subsequently, a Close Result Clear (CRC) was conducted before the start of actual polling. This account is also supported by statements from individuals featured in the shared video,” the statement read.
Statements from polling agents representing other parties are pending verification. When contacted, independent candidate Abdul Hameed, whose polling agent was seen in the video, attributed the incident to the negligence of polling officials who allegedly left the EVMs unattended during breakfast hours. “Abdul Sahid informed me that the video was recorded for amusement before the start of the election at around 6:30 am,” Hameed said.
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