Unfazed by desertion and protest, AAP ups the ante against EVM tampering

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)’s state unit witnessed desertion and its former minister in Delhi, Kapil Mishra, was attacked while protesting against AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal’s alleged corruption even as the party continued its attack on Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) on Wednesday.

After its live demonstration on the floor of the Delhi Assembly on Tuesday to prove that EVMs were rigged by the BJP to win successive elections, AAP announced it will stage a demonstration outside the Election Commission office to demand that Voter-Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT)-equipped voting machines be used in all future elections. AAP will participate in the all-party meeting called by the Commission on Friday to discuss the EVM tampering issue.

Meanwhile, the party was hit by the desertion of former convenor of its Punjab unit, Gurpreet Singh Waraich, who resigned from the primary membership of AAP unhappy with the appointment of Sangrur MP Bhagwant Mann as the new state unit chief.

He said the entire process of appointing the new state chief was “fake and unfair” and said the party adopted a “pick and choose policy” while inviting members for the election to the post.

“I’m resigning from the primary membership with a heavy heart. For Punjab, whatever needs to be done, I will do, but this party has deviated from its principles and it has become difficult for me to continue,” Waraich told reporters in Chandigarh.

Ex-Minister’s charge In Delhi, former AAP Minister Kapil Mishra, who has filed complaints against Arvind Kejriwal and almost all top leaders of AAP on multiple charges of corruption, started an indefinite dharna against his former bosses.

While sitting on a protest, Mishra was attacked allegedly by an AAP supporter who was later taken into custody by the police. Kejriwal has not offered any explanation on Mishra’s charge that he saw the AAP supremo accept a bribe of ₹2 crore.

At the same time, AAP has intensified its anti-EVM campaign, asserting that it is the main issue confronting the country. After the live demo in the Delhi Assembly, AAP leader Gopal Rai announced that its Delhi MLAs and senior leaders will hold a protest rally titled “Save Democracy Movement” in front of the EC office on Thursday.

Rejecting the EC’s assertion that EVMs cannot be manipulated, Rai said, “The Commission in its response said we used a dummy and not an actual machine in yesterday’s demonstration. We request the EC to arrange a hackathon. We will show how its own machines can be rigged.”

Apart from demanding that VVPAT-equipped EVMs be used in future elections, APP will approach the EC with the request that votes registered in EVMs and paper trails of 25 per cent randomly picked booths be tallied, Rai said.

Gathers support On this issue, AAP seemed to have gathered the support of some activists and other parties. Tehseen Poonawalla, who calls himself a Congress supporter, and Election Watch convenor VV Rao sought answers to 21 questions from the Election Commission, in a bid to ensure a transparent poll process.

“EVMs can be tampered with in several ways. Why doesn’t the Commission open up this challenge for international hackers, media and election commissioners of foreign democracies to witness,” Poonawalla asked during a press briefing here.

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