News Brief
'Never Blamed The Machines': J&K CM Omar Abdullah’s Stand On EVM Puts Him At Odds With Congress
J&K CM Omar Abdullah
Amid Congress and its allies questioning the reliability of Electronic Voting Machines (EVM) and advocate for a return to ballot voting, the National Conference, a member of the INDI alliance, has said one has to be "consistent" in questioning the voting method.
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, who is also the vice-president of the National Conference, a Congress ally, stated in an interview with news agency PTI that questioning EVMs only when election outcomes are unfavourable is wrong.
"When you get a hundred plus members of Parliament using the same EVMs, and you celebrate that as sort of a victory for your party, you can't then a few months later turn around and say... we don't like these EVMs because now the election results aren't going the way we would like them to," Abdullah said.
When asked if his comments aligned with the BJP's stance against Congress's EVM allegations, Abdullah replied, "God forbid... No, it's just that... what's right is right."
"If you have problems with the EVMs, then you should be consistent in those problems," he said.
He added that parties should not contest polls if they do not trust the voting method.
In this year’s Jammu and Kashmir Assembly elections—the first after the Centre revoked the region's special status and reconstituted it as a Union Territory—the National Conference, led by Omar Abdullah, delivered a strong performance, securing 48 out of 95 seats. Its ally Congress managed to win six seats.
In a separate remark deviating from the Congress's position, he commended the Narendra Modi government for its infrastructure projects like the Central Vista.
"Contrary to what everybody else believes, I think that what's happening with this Central Vista project in Delhi is a damn good thing. I believe constructing a new Parliament building was an excellent idea. We needed a new Parliament building. The old one had outlived its utility," he said.
Abdullah's statement comes amid protests by Congress and its allies against the EVM voting method after big losses in Haryana and Maharashtra Assembly elections.
The BJP has dismissed these allegations, citing the Opposition's victory in Jharkhand, which held elections simultaneously with Maharashtra.
