All-party meet to discuss electronic voting

By Our Special Correspondent

CHENNAI, JAN. 27. With the poll fever having caught up with the State Election department, the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), Mr. Mrutunjay Sarangi, today said an all-party meeting would be convened here in mid-February to discuss the modalities of demonstrating the use of electronic voting machines (EVM) throughout Tamil Nadu.

Mr. Sarangi, in an informal chat with reporters at the Secretariat, said a meeting of district Collectors was also being convened for the purpose around that time, as the Election Commission had said that EVMs would be compulsory in all the 234 constituencies in the coming Assembly elections.

Mr. Sarangi said he personally did not envisage any problem in the use of EVMs. The question of training the staff in the use of EVMs would also be discussed. There were 9000 EVMs on hand now and another 51,000 would be required for the State elections. The public sector companies, Bharat Electronics Limited and Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited, had been approached for supplying the EVMs and they had promised to supply all the required machines by March 31, he said.

On the Chennai district Collector's probe into whether the two Electors Photo Identity Cards (EPIC), in the names of the Chief Minister, Mr. M. Karunanidhi, and the Union Commerce and Industries Minister, Mr. Murasoli Maran, produced in the Assembly a few days back, were genuine or not, Mr. Sarangi said that due to the intervening holidays, he had sought more time for the probe.

The Collector, who has been asked by the CEO to investigate the matter in response to the Assembly Speaker's directive, after the issue created a furore in the House, was expected to submit his report by Monday evening, Mr. Sarangi said.

Asked if the AIADAMK group leader, Mr. P.R. Sundaram, who produced the two EPIC cards in the Assembly, would also be interrogated, he said that would be decided by the Collector.

Mr. Sarangi said that once the extended 100 per cent verification of households in the 42 Assembly segments was completed on February 7, the supplementary electoral rolls for Chennai would be ready soon to facilitate another round of online issuance of EPIC cards to electors not covered yet.

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Section  : Southern States
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