Kerala Opposition leader Ramesh Chennithala, who had previously claimed that multiple and dual entries in the state voters' list could sabotage the election process, asked Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Teeka Ram Meena on Friday to ensure that the postal ballots are transparent. "It has come to our attention that the officials in charge of managing the postal votes have made serious mistakes. A total of 3 lakh postal votes were cast by those who were on poll duty,” Chennithala said at a press conference held in Thiruvananthapuram on Friday.
The Opposition leader said that he has spoken to the CEO about the matter in addition to sending a comprehensive letter. The elections to the state Assembly were held on April 6 and the counting will be held on May 2.
The Congress leader alleged that a few poll workers were asked to vote at specific polling stations, and that some of them were even given postal ballots. “There will be duplicate votes as a result. We have asked Teeka Ram Meena to make sure there is no overlap and that the appropriate action is taken against the wrongdoers," Ramesh Chennithala said.
The Congress-led United Democratic Front, Kerala's Opposition party, published a list of over 4.3 lakh voters five days before the election on Apri l6, alleging that their names had appeared several times in the voter list.
Chennithala also spoke about errors in the facility given to those over the age of 80 at the press conference on Friday. The elderly and persons with disabilities, who had registered for postal votes, were allowed to vote from their own homes. Officials went door to door with ballot papers and returned with the votes cast on the ballot. "It has come to our attention that the votes that were taken from people's homes were kept in plastic carry bags rather than ballot boxes. We have asked Teeka Ram Meena to make sure there's no risk of misappropriation," said Chennithala.
(With IANS input)