On Monday, one of the rooms at a building in Kozhikode, where materials used for the Assembly elections were kept under guard, was opened. Congress had protested against the opening of the room.
Following a controversy in Kerala over the opening of a room where polling material was stored, the state’s Chief Electoral Officer on Tuesday issued a direction that any strong room or unsealed room should not be opened till the counting of votes.
On Monday, one of the rooms at a building in Kozhikode, where materials used for the Assembly elections were kept under guard, was opened. Congress had protested against the opening of the room.
The Kozhikode District Election Officer clarified that the room that was opened was not a strong room where EVMs are kept, but only an unsealed room where polling materials were stored. On Tuesday, a similar move in Palakkad district also turned controversial, prompting the Chief Electoral Officer, Dr Rathan U Kelkar, to issue directions to all the District Election Officers and Returning Officers regarding the counting protocols.
The CEO said, “It has been reiterated that under no circumstances shall any strong rooms or unsealed rooms be opened or accessed for the purpose of preparing Index Cards or verifying data in the ENCORE portal. All concerned officers have been directed to ensure strict compliance with these instructions in order to safeguard the integrity, transparency, and security of the electoral process.”
In Kozhikode, the polling materials room opened was related to the Assembly constituency, Perambra, where LDF convener and senior CPI(M) leader T P Ramakrishnan is contesting against the IUML’s Fathima Thahilya. On Monday morning, she was informed that a room close to the strongroom would be opened for updating poll data. She alleged that when she reached the spot, the room had already been opened.
The District Collector, who is also the District Election Officer, clarified that along with EVMs and VVPATs from Perambra, certain documents, which the returning officer should maintain, were also brought to the JDT Complex, which houses strongrooms. These materials were not kept in the strong room. As per the Election Commission directive, the final approval of the data in the ENCORE software was to be completed by April 20. Hence, the room was opened to verify and update the information in ENCORE by cross-checking it with the details recorded in the diaries of the presiding officers in the Perambra constituency, the official said.
In Palakkad district, there was an attempt to open a room at the Government Victoria College, where polling materials of the Nenmara Assembly constituency were kept. It was alleged that a presiding officer had kept his diary in the room. After Congress protested against the move, District Collector M S Madhavikutty decided not to open any room associated with elections.
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