PANJIM: Expressing its solidarity with the nation-wide ‘EVM Hatao, Desh Bachao Movement’, which is seeking to abolish Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) and restore paper ballots, Goans Against EVM has decided to start a signature campaign to support their cause.
Two Delhi-based Supreme Court lawyers Adv Bhanu Prasad and Mehmood Pracha, who have been spearheading the legal battle against the EVMs at the national level, will address two mega meetings in the State on February 2, to educate the people about the alleged risks and flaws of EVMs and mobilise support for their ban and to reintroduce ballot voting. The meetings are scheduled at Margao at 10 am and at Mapusa at 4 pm.
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The Goans Against EVM group has submitted a petition to the President requesting her to intervene and order the scrapping of EVMs across the country. The group claimed that EVMs have eroded the public trust in the electoral process and that the Election Commission of India (ECI) has failed to address this vital issue.
Former Margao chairperson Savio Coutinho said that instances of tampering of EVMs have been reported which gives enough indication that EVMs can be manipulated.
He pointed out that in the 2022 Assembly elections, the ECI provided a home voting facility but more than 3,000 votes of senior citizens and persons with disabilities were declared invalid since numbers on the pro forma and the envelope could not match or tally.
