Not going back to ballot paper: CEC
Kolkata, Feb 1: Chief Election Commissioner Sunil Arora on Friday ruled out going back to the ballot paper, a demand raised by many opposition parties who have questioned authenticity of the electronic voting machine (EVM).
"We are not going back to the days of ballot paper. (The) EVMs have been in use in our country for more than two decades. And it has been a consistent policy of the ECI (Election Commission of India) for quite sometime and I think it will remain the same," Arora said.
"Political parties have a right to make their feedback known and their apprehensions because they're the biggest stakeholders after the voters. But, we're not going to go back to ballot-paper days. We're not going to the days of ballot papers being snatched, muscle power being used for that (and) inordinate delays in counting," the chief election commissioner (CEC) said.
He was interacting with the media after two days of deliberations with political parties and officials here over the upcoming general election. Election Commissioner Ashok Lavasa as well as deputy election commissioners Umesh Sinha, Sandip Saxena, Sudip Jain and Chandrabushan Kumar were also present.
The CEC's support of EVM comes on heels of a raging debate over the efficacy of the machine. At the Brigade rally of opposition parties here last month, National Conference chief Farooq Abdullah had called the EVM "chor (thief) machine".
Arora cited that there was a difference between tampering and malfunctioning. "We've been using the words very loosely as if they are synonymous. Tampering and malfunctioning are two different things. The commission has zero tolerance on malfunctioning. We're constantly trying to upgrade the EVMs and make them foolproof."
On a US-based self-proclaimed hacker's recent claim that the 2014 poll was rigged by tampering EVMs, Arora described the claim as "false" and an "ploy with criminal intent".
The CEC said the EVMs were manufactured by "highly-secured" companies, which have been engaged in defence equipment manufacturing too, and a technical expert panel supervises it.
Arora said the voter-verifiable paper audit trail (VVPAT), which have been successfully used in the recent state elections, would now be used across the country in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls.
He pointed out that the VVPATs were used in three by-elections in West Bengal Uluberia, Noapara, and Mahestala and there was not a single request for recounting.
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AIITA welcomes Karnataka’s ban on obscene songs in school events
Bhatkal: The Karnataka unit of the All India Ideal Teachers Association (AIITA) has welcomed the Karnataka government’s decision to strictly ban school children from dancing to obscene songs during educational and cultural programmes in government, aided, and private schools across the state.
AIITA Karnataka State President M. R. Manvi congratulated the government for taking what he termed an important step to preserve the sanctity of education.
“Such decisions to safeguard the dignity of school children and uphold the values of education are the need of the hour. This rule should not be limited to government schools alone but must be strictly implemented in all private educational institutions as well,” he said.
He further urged the government to address other concerns within school programmes.
“The government should not only prohibit obscene dances in the name of school anniversaries, but also ensure that plays and dialogues that incite religious hatred are avoided. Schools should be centres of harmony, not platforms for spreading hatred,” he added.
According to a recent circular issued by the Department of School Education and Literacy, obscene dances are adversely affecting the mental health and moral values of students.
In this regard, schools have been advised to use songs that promote nationalism, positive thinking, the greatness of Kannada culture, and value-based traditions instead of inappropriate content during programmes.
The circular also emphasises that students should be dressed in decent attire.
AIITA also backed the department’s warning that disciplinary action would be taken against head teachers if such guidelines are violated. The association has further demanded that district Deputy Directors of Public Instruction strictly monitor the implementation of these rules.
