North Lakhimpur (Assam), Apr 19 (PTI): An SUV carrying an electronic voting machine partially sank into a river after water level rose suddenly washing away a mechanised boat that was ferrying the vehicle in Assam’s Lakhimpur constituency on Friday, officials said.

The driver and the polling officer of the vehicle managed to get out before water gushed into the vehicle, an official said.

It was on its way to Amarpur area in Sadiya to replace an EVM after a technical glitch was detected in it as polling commenced in the morning, the official said.

A quick response team stationed at Sadiya dispatched the SUV with the EVM, accompanied by the driver and an official.

“As the vehicle was being carried by a mechanised boat across the Deopani river, its water level and current suddenly increased. The boat sank under the force of the water, and the vehicle also partially sank,” the official said.

“A State Disaster Response Force team was called in to pull the vehicle out of the water. The EVM, meant for replacement, was damaged in the accident,” he added.

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New Delhi: An animated video post shared on BJP’s official Instagram handle, asserting that the Congress party would snatch wealth from non-Muslims to ‘distribute it to its favorite community of invaders,’ has sparked significant backlash. Following the uproar, the photo sharing platform has taken down the post, reports Newslaundry.com. 

Meanwhile, it is uncertain whether the post was removed by the BJP or by Instagram following mass reporting by several users as “misinformation” and “hate speech”. The video depicted Rahul Gandhi holding the Congress manifesto which transforms into the logo of the Muslim league. Furthermore, it sought support for PM Modi from every ‘Bharatiya,’ who is also shown wearing a saffron turban.

According to the report, it also contained a clip of PM Modi alleging that the former PM Manmohan Singh had said, “Muslims have the first claim on our resources,” insinuating that if the Congress were to assume power, it would confiscate the money and assets of non-Muslims, redistributing them to Muslims, whom it favored. Labeling Muslims as ‘infiltrators’, the video depicted historical invaders as looters who plundered India's resources and suggested that the Congress party continues to empower individuals from the same community.

The video then communicated that the Congress party’s manifesto is “nothing but Muslim league’s ideology in disguise. If you are a non-Muslim, Congress will snatch your wealth and distribute it to Muslims.” It also slinged the BJP’s official slogan ‘abki baar, 400 paar,’ and called that it was the need of the hour, since Modi only has the “strength to stop the Congress party’s evil plans.”

Similar claims have also been made by several BJP leaders. Recently, Union Minister Anurag Thakur stated that the Congress intends to “Give your children's property to Muslims.”