Conviction rate in election-related offences high in Karnataka, says top EC official
Bengaluru (PTI): The Chief Electoral Officer of Karnataka Manoj Kumar Meena has said that there were over 50 per cent convictions in the cases related to the model code of conduct (MCC) violations in the state.
He said the Election Commission (EC) closely follows the MCC violation cases, which made this happen.
"Karnataka is one the states where the highest convictions have happened. Last time, 2,000-odd cases were booked. All were charge-sheeted, all were tried and I think more than 50 per cent conviction we have done in Karnataka," Meena told PTI in an interview.
According to an EC official, these convictions pertain to the elections that have taken place from 2013 to 2019.
Explaining further, Meena said, "Decisions have happened in all the cases but in more than 50 per cent cases, the convictions were in our favour. It is a big number. I don't know about other states but it is very rare that in election-related cases convictions are happening."
Stating that Karnataka has done better, compared to other states, the CEO said the EC and his office follow the cases very closely.
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Giving details about the high conviction rate, Meena said the cases are booked meticulously, and people are imparted training on their handling.
"We train our people. The static squad teams and the flying squad teams have got magisterial powers. They have power to search and seize. We have told them how to search and how to seize, how to book a case, how to present before the court and how to take court's permission," the CEO said.
Noting that huge cash, precious metals and freebies have been seized in the state "like never before" during the ongoing Karnataka Assembly election process, Meena said the exercise started well in advance, almost four months prior to the election dates being announced, in the form of coordination with various agencies.
According to him, a Standard Operating Procedure was finalised due to which the infrastructure was already in place when the elections were declared.
The officers on election duty started the vigilance activities almost immediately after the commission's visit to the state, the CEO said.
Since, everything was in place, the official machinery was able to do it in a more professional way and caught a huge amount of cash, gold, liquor and freebies.
"We are vigilant. Next 14 days will be very crucial for us. We are checking at our borders 100 per cent but we are keeping a watch on the internal movement. We are gathering intelligence at the local level also," Meena said.
He also said the commission is seeking and getting public support through its mobile application 'cVIGIL' where anyone can take a picture or share any information about any election-related malpractice.
According to the data shared by Meena's office, as on Thursday, seizures totalled Rs 292.06 crore since the model code of conduct came into effect on March 29, including Rs 102.9 crore cash, liquor worth Rs 68.69 crore and 149.31 kg gold worth Rs 76 crore.
Speaking about hate speech, Meena said the commission is watching any such development closely and has booked five such cases.
"We are watching television, social media and even the newspapers also. We have a dedicated team at each level at district as well as our level," the CEO explained.
"We have a dedicated control room for watching the media 24x7. It is not so that after 9 pm we will not watch. We will watch full and give alerts. It is done at the level of the ECI (Election Commission of India) also," he added.
On the issue of tackling urban apathy during voting, he said various measures have been taken such as identifying the pockets where the voting percentage is low, holding meetings with the residents there and creating awareness among them.
The Commission also relaunched 'Chunavana' mobile application, which will give details about the name, polling station, how to reach there and how many people are standing in the queue, Meena said.
"Every 15 minutes, the data will be updated in Chunavana app. So if you know your booth, if you enter your booth number and Assembly constituency in the application, it will tell you how many people are standing in the queue," he explained.
Due to the initiatives to encourage people to exercise their franchise, almost 16 lakh new voters have been added after January 5, it was stated.
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UDF leaders see local body poll trends as pointer to 2026 Assembly elections in Kerala
Thiruvananthapuram (PTI): Buoyed by the strong performance of the Congress-led UDF in the local body polls, KPCC president Sunny Joseph said on Saturday that the front's results indicated the people had rejected the LDF government.
According to early trends, the UDF was leading in more grama panchayats, block panchayats, municipalities and corporations than the LDF.
The local body polls were held in two phases in the state earlier this week.
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Speaking to reporters here, Joseph said the people of Kerala had extended their support to the UDF.
"We could expose the LDF government’s anti-people stance and the people understood it. The LDF’s fake propaganda was rejected by the people. The UDF is moving towards a historic victory," he said.
He said a united effort, proper preparations, good candidate selection and hard work had resulted in the Congress and the UDF’s victory in the elections.
Asked about the prospects in the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation, Joseph said the party was studying the matter and would comment later.
LDF convenor T P Ramakrishnan said the results would be closely examined.
According to him, the government had done everything possible for the people.
"Why such a verdict happened will be examined at the micro level. People’s opinion will be considered and further steps will be taken," he said.
He added that decisions would be taken after analysing the results. "If any corrective measures are required, we will initiate them and move forward," he said.
AICC leader K C Venugopal said the results showed that people had begun ousting those who, he alleged, were responsible for the loss of gold at Lord Ayyappa’s temple.
"This trend will continue in the Assembly elections as well. It is an indication that the people are ready to bring down the LDF government," he said.
Venugopal said the UDF had registered victories even in CPI(M) and LDF strongholds.
"I congratulate all UDF workers for their hard work. Congress workers and leaders worked unitedly," he said.
Referring to remarks made by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan against the Congress on polling day, Venugopal said the voters had responded through the verdict.
"I do not know whether the chief minister understands that the people are against him. Otherwise, he does not know the sentiment of the people. The state government cannot move an inch further," he said.
He said the results indicated a strong comeback for the UDF in Kerala.
Asked whether the Sabarimala gold loss issue had affected the LDF in the local polls, Venugopal said the CM and the CPI(M) state secretary did not take the issue seriously.
"We took a strong stand on the matter. The BJP played a foul game in it," he alleged.
On the BJP's role in the local body elections, Venugopal alleged that the party operated with the CPI(M) 's tacit support.
"The CPI(M) supported the central government on issues such as PM-SHRI, labour codes and corruption in national highway construction. The CPI(M) is facing ideological decline, and the state government’s policies are against the party’s own decisions," he said.
Meanwhile, LDF ally Kerala Congress (M) leader Jose K Mani said the party could not win all the wards it had expected in the elections.
He congratulated winners from all parties and said the party would closely examine the losses and identify shortcomings. "Later, we will take corrective measures," he added.
Senior Congress leader and MP Rajmohan Unnithan said the trends in the local body elections indicated that the UDF would return to power in the 2026 Assembly elections.
"We will win 111 seats as in 1977 and return to power in 2026. The anti-government sentiment of the people is reflected in the elections," he said.
Unnithan said the people were disturbed and unhappy with the present government.
"The trend indicates the end of the LDF government," he added.
CPI(M) MLA M M Mani said the people had shown ingratitude towards the LDF despite benefiting from welfare schemes.
"After receiving all welfare schemes and living comfortably, people voted against us due to some temporary sentiments. Is that not ingratitude," he asked.
Mani said no such welfare initiatives had taken place in Kerala earlier.
"People are receiving pensions and have enough to eat. Even after getting all this, they voted against us. This is what can be called ingratitude," he said.
Muslim League state president Panakkad Sayyid Sadiq Ali Shihab Thangal said the results were beyond expectations.
"The outcome points towards the Secretariat in Thiruvananthapuram, indicating that a change of government is imminent. We are going to win the Assembly election," he said.
