After ABVP win, DU told to secure EVMs
New Delhi, Sep 17 : The Delhi High Court on Monday directed Delhi University's Chief Electoral Officer to secure the Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) used in DUSU elections till the next date of hearing and issued notices to the Centre, the university and others.
"The Chief Electoral Officer, appointed by University of Delhi to conduct elections of the DUSU elections, is directed to ensure that the EVMs, utilised for the conduct of the polling and counting of votes, along with all paper trail/documentation are kept in a secured place under his lock and key, till the next date of hearing," Justice Siddharth Mridul said.
The court asked the Central government, Delhi University, its Chief Electoral Officer, the Election Commission and the three victorious Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) candidates to file their replies within three weeks and fixed October 29 for hearing.
The court was hearing a plea by the National Students Union of India (NSUI) candidates Sunny Chhillar, Leena and Saurabh Yadav who challenged the Delhi University Students Union (DUSU) election results declared on Thursday.
The plea sought quashing of election results as unconstitutional, arbitrary and illegal and sought fresh polls through ballot papers.
The RSS-affiliated ABVP won three of the four top DUSU seats. ABVP candidate Ankiv Basoya was elected the DUSU President while Shakti Singh and Jyoti Chaudhary were elected the Vice President and as Joint Secretary respectively.
NSUI's Akash Chaudhary defeated ABVP's Sudhir Dedha to win the Secretary's post.
The petitioner has alleged that that they were aggrieved by the arbitrary, corrupt and unfair election conducted by the university as out of 126 EVMs used, seven went missing and the same was reported to the authorities.
They alleged that Chillar was leading his opponent by 4,200 votes by noon but all of a sudden they stopped the counting on the ground of EVM malfunctioning and resumed counting after 5-6 hours. The entire process was marred by tampering of EVMs, the plea said.
The plea alleged that EVMs were tampered with and questioned as to how "privately procured" EVMs could have been used in the polls held on September 12.
Countering NSUI's submission, Central government standing counsel Anil Soni said the same EVMs were used in the DUSU elections held in 2009, 2011, 2012 and 2017 but no objections were raised that time.
The NSUI candidates alleged that the elections were conducted in an "arbitrary, corrupt and unfair" manner by the university and DU was acting under extraneous pressure.
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EAM Jaishankar meets Jamaican PM, gifts over 10 BHISHM Cubes
Kingston (PTI): External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Monday met Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness and discussed ways to further deepen "political, economic and people-to-people cooperation."
Jaishankar also conveyed greetings from Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Holness.
"Pleased to call on Prime Minister @AndrewHolnessJM in Kingston. Conveyed the greetings of PM @narendramodi," Jaishankar posted on X.
"Discussed deepening our political, economic and people-to-people cooperation. Value his commitment towards further strengthening India-Jamaica relations," the post further read.
Also, the external affairs minister handed over 10 BHISHM (Bharat Health Initiative for Sahyog Hita & Maitri) Cubes as a gift to Jamaica.
"Formally handed over 10 BHISHM Cubes as a gift from India to Jamaica, in the presence of PM @AndrewHolnessJM, Health Minister @christufton and FM @kaminajsmith," Jaishankar posted on X.
"The BHISHM Cube mobile hospital system, designed for rapid deployment, will help Jamaica during disasters and emergencies. The gift of these cubes is a statement of friendship, a commitment to disaster preparedness, and an outcome of innovation," the post said.
Jaishankar arrived in Kingston on Saturday evening, marking the first leg of his nine-day tour of Jamaica, Suriname, and Trinidad and Tobago, aimed at further strengthening India's strategic and cultural ties with the Caribbean nations.
Earlier in the day, he interacted with the Indian diaspora and discussed India's ongoing transformation in infrastructure, human development and technology-driven governance and entrepreneurship with them.
He also highlighted the cricket bond between both countries as India gifted a scoreboard to Jamaica.
A scoreboard was dedicated at Sabina Park in Kingston. It is the home of the Jamaica cricket team and is the only Test cricket ground in the Caribbean island nation.
The minister expressed hope that the new scoreboard would witness many memorable innings, including those symbolising the enduring friendship between the two countries.
Cricket has long been a strong cultural bridge between India and Jamaica, which is part of the West Indies cricket team.
Jamaican players, including Chris Gayle, Courtney Walsh and Michael Holding, have played a major role in shaping the legacy of West Indies cricket in the international arena, contributing to its dominance in earlier decades and its continued global appeal.
