BJP seeks EC probe on discovery of VVPATs

Mysuru: When eight Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trial (VVPAT) machines were discovered in a shed in Managuli village in Vijayapura district, the BJP smelled foul play and has asked the Election Commission to conduct an inquiry into the matter. At a press conference in Mysuru on Monday, BJP State Unit General Secretary Shobha Karandlaje requested the EC to look into the matter and also verify if there was a connection between the discovered VVPATs and the complaint given by party candidate from Babaleshwar constituency in Vijayapura. Babaleshwar candidate Viju Gowda Patil had complained, on the day of counting, that in certain booths where the EVMs had been changed, the party had polled poor results.

Karandlaje also urged the EC to verify the fake audio tapes released by the Congress which alleged that BJP leaders had offered bribes to lure Congress and JD(S) MLAs onto their side. She said that the EC should probe and find out the mimicry artistes who were employed by the Congress candidates to paint the BJP leaders in poor light. She also pointed out that Congress MLA from Yellapur had clarified that no BJP leader had spoken to his wife. She added that the BJP had never tried to bribe any MLA but had only publicly appealed to them to vote according to their conscience during the vote of confidence.

Karandlaje said that BJP State President B.S. Yeddyurappa had begun touring the State to make sure that the party delivers a good performance in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls and also to bring the party to power in the State. She said that the coalition government formed by the Congress and JD(S) will collapse after a point of time and recalled the fate of the coalition in 2004. She also dismissed the allegations that BJP had fielded a weak candidate in Chamundeshwari constituency, as a ploy to make the JD(S) candidate win, defeating Congress candidate former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah. She dismissed any understanding with any of the parties.