Representative Image
NEW DELHI: Poll rights body ADR has written to the Election Commission, demanding reasons behind discrepancy in the number of votes polled and the number of votes counted in the latest Lok Sabha polls.
Poll rights body Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) has claimed that there is a discrepancy in the number of votes polled and the number of votes counted in 538 constituencies in the Lok Sabha elections.
According to an analysis by the ADR released in a press conference on Monday, in the recent Lok Sabha polls a total of 5,54,598 votes counted are less than the votes polled in 362 parliamentary constituencies while a total of 35,093 votes have been counted in excess of the votes polled in 176 parliamentary constituencies.
The ADR on Thursday wrote to Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar and Election Commissioners Gyanesh Kumar and Dr Sukhbir Singh Sandhu, and raised serious concerns over the alleged discrepancies in the electronic voting machine (EVM) votes during the 2024 general elections.
The letter traces the issue back to 2019, when ADR and Common Cause filed a petition in the Supreme Court of India.
They sought a directive for the Election Commission of India (ECI) to stop announcing the results based on provisional data before a thorough reconciliation. The petition cited the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, where the results were announced based on estimated data.
Despite the Supreme Court issuing notices to the ECI and the Union of India in December 2019, no substantial action was taken, the ADR alleged.
The letter calls for immediate action from the ECI to address these discrepancies and ensure public trust in the electoral process.
"Each and every vote is important and must be accounted for," the letter said, urging the ECI to explain the reasons behind these inconsistencies.
The ADR has requested the ECI to inform them of any steps or actions taken in light of their findings. They emphasized the necessity for the ECI, as a constitutional body, to uphold the integrity of free and fair elections in India.