TEAM HERALD
PANJIM: The Aam Aadmi Party cried foul against the Election Commission since it failed to update their symbol and persisted with the old version of the “battery torch”, which the AAP said looked too much like their broom symbol, potentially confusing the voters.
In a complaint filed with the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Keshav Chandra, around midday, AAP has demanded that polling should be halted and a re-poll be conducted. The Election Commission has however not acceded to this demand.
Addressing media persons later in the day, CEO Keshav Chandra said that he has “seen the complaint and will look into it.”
AAP party members and the candidate Dattaram desai said that the torch had rays of light emanating from it and those rays could be confused with the sticks of a broom.
“We do not understand how the Election Commission did not update their symbol. This same problem was noticed in the Delhi assembly elections in 2013 and after that the EC updated their symbol in order that the battery torch does not have rays. A notice with the new symbol was sent to the Goa Election Commission,” Adv Satish Sonak an AAP member said.
“Even in Delhi where the elections were held two days earlier the symbol was changed,” he said adding that it was extreme indifference on the part of the state election officials.
“If Delhi can do it, why not Goa? Is it a question of money? This is extreme indifference,” he said adding that had the Election Commission notified them about the symbols they could have educated the voters to be mindful of getting confused.
The party however refused to speculate as to how many of the votes they could have lose on account of the perceived confusion. The party however, has taken offence to the Election Commission not giving to them in writing that their complaint has been over ruled.
“He (State CEO Keshav Chandra) has only verbally told us that he cannot conduct a repoll. We do not understand this. If we are in the wrong tell us so in writing,” Satish Sonak of AAP said adding that they could have challenged the EC’s decision had they got it in writing.
AAP activists were earlier also stopped from wearing topis (caps), by election officials no less than the level of collector on the grounds that they were party symbols, even though they were plain topis without any party symbols or slogans printed on them.
Finally the state election officials passed an order allowing them to wear the plain topis even in and around the election booths. The order came only after much haggling between AAP poll volunteers and the local election officials. In some cases even after the order was passed the volunteers were stopped from wearing the topis as confusion prevailed among election officials.
