Faulty EVMs delay polling in Saligramam, Kodambakkam

C Shivakumar

Chennai:

Chennai municipal council elections in Saligramam and Kodambakkam began on a wrong note as faulty machines delayed the polls by 90 minutes on Monday.

Technical glitches in the electronic voting machines in ward number 129 left the voters harried and the election observers puzzled as they ran helter and skelter to look for options as election was delayed.

Speaking to Express, the polling official of the ward said, “the voting machines have not been checked properly. If they would have conducted proper checks this sort of issues would have never cropped up.”

The problem began when the voting machines showed the votes as invalid. Interestingly, the officials have changed four voting machines in one booth in Kaveri Matriculation School in Saligramam.

Helped arrived at 8.45 am when officials rushed with fresh voting machines but then patience of voters gave away and many returned to their homes without casting votes.

“I am diabetic and have been waiting here without having my breakfast,” said a 62-year-old Rajagopal. The former commissioner of provident fund blamed the state election commission for not doing their duty properly. Bala, another retired banked from Indian Overseas Bank, said the elections lacked planning and people have to owe responsibility.

Similarly voting in ward number 134 was also delayed for more than 90 minutes due to faulty voting machines.