The Nationalist Congress Party in Meghalaya has asked the Election Commission of India not to allow service voters from other states and from Nepal working in various defence establishments to become voters of Meghalaya.
A delegation of the NCP raised this concern before the chief election commissioner, Achal Kumar Joti, who is in Meghalaya along with two election commissioners, Om Prakash Rawat and Sunil Arora to review the poll preparedness of the state which is going to Assembly polls early next year.
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After meeting the ECI team, NCP Meghalaya state general secretary, SP Thapa told reporters that most people recruited in various defence establishments were from other states and in certain Indian army like the Gorkha Regiment Centre, even people from Nepal were recruited.
“These service people have already enrolled as voters in their respective states and they should be the service voters of their state only. How can service people from other states and Nepal become voters of Meghalaya just because they are posted here,” he said.
Asking the ECI to use ballot papers in next year’s Assembly elections, the NCP also questioned its decision to count the votes recorded in EVMs and VVPAT slips only one polling station from each constituency.
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“We demanded that all polling booths should be counted in order to ensure that votes recorded in EVMs and VPPAT slips are tallying. If the ECI is not counting all votes recorded in EVMs and VVPAT slips from polling booths, what is the point in introducing VVPAT?” NCP state working president, Vijay Raj said while asking the ECI to better to do away with EVMs and VVPATs.