Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia attacked the opposition for raising doubts on EVMs

Gwalior: Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia criticized the opposition for casting doubt on electronic voting machines (EVMs) in Gwalior, saying that those who are unable to accept their flaws cannot be assisted. He said that the opposition has made it a practice to assign blame for its defeats to others. “If you win, that’s great, but if you lose, you blame someone else. How much longer will this last? The Union Minister said on Friday, “Who can assist those who do not want to acknowledge themselves, those who do not want to see their own shortcomings?”

Following Congress leader Bhai Jagtap’s disparaging statements on the Election Commission of India (ECI) and its usage of electronic voting machines (EVMs), the Union Minister made these comments. Jagtap refused to change his offensive “kutta” comment against the ECI, which he said was destroying democracy via “sycophancy.”

Additionally, he declined to issue an apology to the Election Commission for his offensive “kutta” comment. “I shall provide absolutely no apology…What I mentioned is correct if the PM and other ministers are exerting pressure on them. I’m not going to apologize.The Election Commission is not there to assist anybody; rather, it exists to further solidify the nation’s democracy. I stand by my statement. The Election Commission needs to function similarly to TN Seshan. Because of the EC’s servile mentality, democracy is being denigrated,” he stated.

According to Jagtap, Congress brought EVM technology to India based on its use in nations like the US and France, but after 2009, questions about its legitimacy started to surface.

“Our democracy is the largest democracy in the world,” Jagtap said. If such a question is posed, it must be addressed. The Supreme Court has received a number of petitions about this. In April 2024, a decision was made on the matter. If you don’t want ballot paper, it was suggested that VVPAT slips be counted. The Supreme Court ruled that 5% of the VVPATs should be included, notwithstanding the petition’s request that 50% be counted.

Nana Patole, the leader of the Maharashtra Congress, said earlier in the day that the Election Commission had manipulated voter data from the just-concluded Maharashtra Assembly elections. He questioned how voter participation rose by 7.83 percentage points after the official voting period finished in a letter to the ECI.

In a letter to the Chief Electoral Officer, Patole raised concerns about EVMs, claiming that public “sentiment” has become “extremely intense” due to an alleged massive “scam” in the Assembly elections’ vote percentage.

In a letter to the Chief Electoral Officer, Patole raised concerns about EVMs, claiming that a “huge scam” in the Assembly elections’ vote percentage had caused public “sentiment” to grow “extremely intense.”

“There are a lot of people who are questioning the 7.83 percent rise in votes. Long lines must have formed at the polling places after 5 p.m. on election day, based on the vote totals released by the Election Commission. How many state seats had lengthy lines of voters after 5 p.m.? “In his letter to the highest polling body,” Patole said.