Defeated seek re-election in Ballarpur, Mul

CHANDRAPUR: Leaders of the opposition parties and defeated candidates in Ballarpur and Mul municipal councils have raised an objection over authenticity of electronic voting machines (EVMs) and demanded reelection at both the places through paper ballot. Ballarpur and Mul are in the assembly constituency of finance minister Sudhir Mungantiwar who has been accused of using his clout to win the election.
Atmosphere in Ballarpur was tense on Monday night when a large crowd gathered before municipal council building, raising an objection over the results that went in favour of BJP candidates.After the mob turned violent and damaged an MSRTC bus, police resorted to cane charge to quell it. Raju Zode of Bahujan Republican Socialist Congress who was placed second in president’s election in Ballarpur charged that EVM were manipulated during polling. Several incidents of EVM malfunction were also reported. Complaints were lodged repeatedly with the authorities, but none paid any heed to our cries, he alleged.
A written complaint of EVM machines being tampered with in ward numbers 9, 12, 13, 14, 15 and 16 was filed with the election commission. It was claimed that seals of ballot machines were broken even before candidates and their representatives could reach the counting place.