Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav on Saturday, 13 June 2026, alleged that 4,000 Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) used in the West Bengal assembly election were destroyed in a fire, calling the incident a 'story of suspicion' and asserting that the public is wise enough to draw its own conclusions.

Context

Yadav posted in Hindi: 'प. बंगाल विधानसभा चुनाव में इस्तेमाल हुई 4000 EVM मशीन का आग में जल जाना, कह रहा है शक़ का फ़साना' — loosely translated as, 'The burning of 4,000 EVM machines used in the West Bengal assembly election tells a tale of suspicion.' He added: 'The rest of the public is wise.' The post was accompanied by a video. NationPress could not independently verify the specific claim of 4,000 EVMs being destroyed.

EVM storage and handling after elections falls under the jurisdiction of the Election Commission of India (ECI), which is constitutionally mandated to maintain custody of voting machines between polls. Any fire in a government warehouse holding EVMs would ordinarily require a formal ECI inquiry and public disclosure.

Policy Backdrop

Opposition parties, including the Samajwadi Party, have questioned EVM integrity repeatedly since the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, demanding either 100 percent VVPAT slip verification or a return to paper ballots. The Supreme Court of India upheld EVM use — with VVPAT paper trail — in multiple orders between 2019 and 2023, declining to order a ballot-paper revert.

Isolated EVM storage incidents, including fires in government warehouses, have been reported across several states since 2017. Each such incident has historically prompted demands from the losing side for transparency, while the Election Commission has maintained that EVMs are tamper-proof and that storage protocols are robust.

The 2021 West Bengal Legislative Assembly election — won decisively by the ruling Trinamool Congress — was followed by opposition allegations of post-poll irregularities, though those complaints centred on violence rather than EVM integrity at the time.

Stakeholders and Impact

Akhilesh Yadav's statement is directed at a broad opposition constituency that has long harboured scepticism about electronic voting. By framing the alleged fire as a 'tale of suspicion,' he is amplifying a narrative that connects EVM storage lapses to questions of electoral credibility — a line of argument that resonates with voters in states like Uttar Pradesh, where assembly elections are due in 2027.

The Election Commission of India has not, as of this report, issued a public statement specifically addressing the claim made in the post. Opposition parties across the spectrum — from the Samajwadi Party in the north to regional formations in the east — have a shared interest in EVM accountability, making this the kind of post that can quickly aggregate cross-party amplification on social media.

What's Next

Pressure is likely to mount on the Election Commission to clarify the status of EVM storage in West Bengal and to release any incident reports related to warehouse fires. Opposition parties may use the issue to revive petitions before the Supreme Court or file formal complaints with the ECI ahead of the next major electoral cycle.

With Uttar Pradesh heading to polls in 2027, Akhilesh Yadav has a clear political incentive to keep EVM credibility in public discourse. Whether the Election Commission responds with a detailed audit or maintains silence will shape how far this controversy travels beyond social media.