Malappuram, Apr 11 (PTI) Malappuram District Collector Vinay Goyal on Saturday said that reports being circulated regarding the strong rooms where voting machines are stored after the April 9 Assembly elections are “incorrect and misleading”.
In a statement, the District Election Officer clarified that all Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) used in the polling process were sealed on the same day after the completion of voting and securely stored in the designated strong rooms of the respective constituencies.
He said the sealing and storage were carried out in the presence of representatives of political parties, with complete videography and under continuous CCTV surveillance.
The EVMs are being kept under a three-tier security arrangement, including deployment of central armed police forces, he added.
The Collector further explained that only the reserve EVMs, which were not used during polling, are shifted to the district-level EVM warehouse after duly informing political party representatives, in accordance with prescribed norms.
He noted that this is a standard procedure followed in all elections and is carried out strictly as per the written guidelines of the Election Commission.
“No election-related procedure, whether concerning voting machines or otherwise, is undertaken without informing political representatives and candidates,” he said.
The District Collector reiterated that any reports suggesting otherwise are “baseless”, the statement added. PTI LGK ROH
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