Will Karnataka Replace EVMs with Ballot Papers in Local Body Elections?

Bengaluru, Sep 11 (NationPress) The Karnataka government is considering the introduction of an ordinance to replace Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) with ballot papers for local body elections. A decision regarding this proposal is anticipated during the upcoming cabinet meeting scheduled for Thursday.

Home Minister G. Parameshwara has confirmed that the cabinet will deliberate on the use of ballot papers instead of EVMs. "We will provide further information in this regard once it is discussed in the cabinet meeting. There will be a discussion on the ballot ordinance," he stated.

In response to this development, Deputy Chief Minister and State Congress President D.K. Shivakumar remarked, "The BJP had enacted legislation for conducting elections through ballot papers during their tenure in the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP). The bylaws of the Election Commission allow for elections to be conducted via ballot papers. This is their own policy. When formulating the Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) Act, I mirrored the BJP's approach. Therefore, using ballot papers for local body elections is not inappropriate."

"The Law Minister has submitted a proposal in this regard. We will adhere to whatever the Election Commission deems appropriate," he added.

The state government has submitted a proposal to the State Election Commission. Sources indicate that legislative amendments are necessary to introduce ballot papers. Consequently, the state government is contemplating an ordinance to facilitate this shift away from EVMs. Alternatively, they could wait until the winter session to enact the necessary amendments and forward them to the Governor.

Since there is a possibility that the Governor may reject the amendments, the Congress-led government has opted to pursue an ordinance to implement ballot papers in local body elections. Government insiders have confirmed that there is a firm commitment to replace EVMs with ballot papers in Zilla Panchayat and Taluk Panchayat elections, as well as in elections for approximately 400 wards of the Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA).

Previously, the Karnataka BJP criticized the Congress-led government for its decision to amend the election process to utilize ballot papers instead of EVMs in the forthcoming local body elections, stating, "By deciding to swap EVM machines for ballot papers in the upcoming local body elections, the Congress-led government in Karnataka admits it came to power through electoral fraud."

BJP State President and MLA B.Y. Vijayendra asserted, "In this context, the 136 Congress MLAs elected in the 2023 state elections via EVMs should first resign. The nine Congress MPs elected to the Lok Sabha from Karnataka should also resign. They should contest again and win using ballot papers. Otherwise, they must acknowledge that they have attained power through election fraud."

"Congress members should reconsider history. The highest number of complaints regarding bogus voting, election fraud, poll violence, and electoral malpractices lodged in courts nationwide were from elections conducted via ballot papers, with most of them against Congress itself. The citizens of this nation have not forgotten that former PM late Indira Gandhi declared a national Emergency due to a court verdict against her election, marred by fraud and malpractice," he noted.

Earlier, State Election Commissioner G.S. Sangreshi stated, "There is nothing wrong with conducting elections using ballot papers, and we are prepared to make arrangements in this regard."

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah confirmed the government's objective to conduct elections using ballot papers rather than Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs), citing their experiences as the basis for this decision. He conveyed this message to the media in Bengaluru on Friday, adding that numerous countries that previously adopted EVMs have reverted to using ballot papers for elections.