• Rajiv Sharma

On 07 January 2025, while announcing poll schedule for Delhi elections, the Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar stated in a press conference that the CCTV footage showing the voting process in polling booths during elections will not be shared with the public or with the aggrieved candidates.

This is nothing but an unholy attempt of the BJP to hide the incidents of bogus voting done after 5 pm on the polling day. To do so, the Modi Government has acted in connivance with the Election Commission, has amended the Conduct of Election rules, which provided for the release of the election related documents to a candidate.

Actually, on 09.12.2024, the Punjab and Haryana High Court had issued directions to the Election Commission to release the CCTV footage of polling booths during recently held Haryana Assembly elections. If the contents of CCTV footage had been revealed to the public as per the High Court's order, then what had actually happened after 5 pm on polling day, which led to an increase of lakhs of votes overnight, would have been exposed before the people. Hence, amendment in the rules aimed at denying the CCTV footage to the contesting candidate was made in tearing haste.

Once again, the duty to fight anti-constitution action of Modi government and Election Commission has fallen upon the shoulders of the Congress Party.

The author is Chief Spokesperson, Chandigarh Pradesh Congress Committee.