Maharashtra bypolls: Palghar EVMs sent in private car to strongroom
Palghar (Maharashtra), May 29 : After polling ended in the Palghar Lok Sabha bye-elections on Monday night, a polling officer in Maharashtra broke protocol and transported the confidential VVPAT-EVMs by his private car to the strongroom, early on Tuesday.
Confirming the incident, Palghar Collector Prashant Narnaware said that a report has been received from the election Zonal Office and a detailed investigation has been ordered through by the Assistant Returning Officer (ARO) of the area.
According to available information, the concerned official, apparently tired of waiting for the bus, called for his own private car from home. It is not clear whether he was accompanied by any security personnel on this venture.
The Collector concurred that it was indeed "a serious lapse" since, after the voting in any elections, "the EVM-VVPATs are considered sacrosanct" and cannot be moved around anywhere in such an unauthorized manner.
"As per the guidelines, after voting is completed, a special bus is sent to pick up all the Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail-Electronic Voting Machines from all the polling centres.
"Each bus has a specific route by which it travels, picks up the machines and takes them to the ARO office. In this case, the laid down procedures were not followed by the concerned officer," Narnaware told IANS.
The officer, whose name has not yet been made known, was the polling officer at Chinchani polling station in Dahanu sub-district.
He loaded a couple of EVM-VVPATs on the rear seat and drove off to the ARO's office early on Tuesday to deposit them in the strongroom before the counting process is undertaken on May 31.
When the shocking development came to light, whips were cracked and a police complaint is set to be lodged against the officer and others.
The high-stakes bye-elections to the Palghar Lok Sabha, along with Bhandara-Gondiya, were held on Monday, amidst widespread incidents of malfunctioning EVM-VVPATs and allegations of foul play by all opposition parties and ruling ally Shiv Sena.
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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dismisses defence minister in surprise announcement
Jerusalem, Nov 5: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday dismissed his popular defence minister, Yoav Gallant, in a surprise announcement that came as the country is embroiled in wars on multiple fronts across the region.
Netanyahu and Gallant have repeatedly been at odds over the war in Gaza. But Netanyahu had avoided firing his rival. Netanyahu cited “significant gaps” and a “crisis of trust” between the men in his Tuesday evening announcement.
“In the midst of a war, more than ever, full trust is required between the prime minister and defence minister,” Netanyahu said. “Unfortunately, although in the first months of the campaign there was such trust and there was very fruitful work, during the last months this trust cracked between me and the defence minister.”
In the early days of the war, Israel's leadership presented a unified front as it responded to Hamas' October 7, 2023, attack. But as the war dragged on and spread to Lebanon, key policy differences have emerged. While Netanyahu has called for continued military pressure on Hamas, Gallant had taken a more pragmatic approach, saying that military force has created the necessary conditions for a diplomatic deal that could bring home hostages held by the Hamas group.
Gallant, a former general who has gained public respect with a gruff, no-nonsense personality, said in a statement: “The security of the state of Israel always was, and will always remain, my life's mission."
Gallant has worn a simple, black buttoned shirt throughout the war in a sign of sorrow over the October 7 attack and developed a strong relationship with his US counterpart, Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin.
A previous attempt by Netanyahu to fire Gallant in March 2023 sparked widespread street protests against Netanyahu. He also flirted with the idea of dismissing Gallant over the summer but held off until Tuesday's announcement.
Gallant will be replaced by Foreign Minister Israel Katz, a Netanyahu loyalist and veteran Cabinet minister who was a junior officer in the military. Gideon Saar, a former Netanyahu rival who recently rejoined the government, will take the foreign affairs post.
Netanyahu has a long history of neutralising his rivals. In his statement, he claimed he had made “many attempts” to bridge the gaps with Gallant.
“But they kept getting wider. They also came to the knowledge of the public in an unacceptable way, and worse than that, they came to the knowledge of the enemy - our enemies enjoyed it and derived a lot of benefit from it,” he said.
