Dholka assembly seat election case: Congress demands suspension of Election officials

New Delhi:The Congress on Wednesday demanded immediate suspension of the election officials who have been made respondents in a case in the Gujarat High Court in connection with violation of election rules during counting for the Dholka assembly constituency.

Speaking to mediapersons here , Congress leaders Shakti Singh Gohil and Abhishek Manu Singhvi said that in the 2017 Gujarat Assembly elections , the BJP candidate from the Dholka constituency Bhupendrasinh Chudasama won by a margin of 327 votes , which the Congress said was even lesser than the number of ballots rejected that were 429.

A petition was filed with reference to the alleged violations by the officials in the High Court High Court by the Congress candidate for the seat Ashwani Rathod and the court.

The court has made the incharge of polling , returning officer Dhawal Jani and the officer giving the certificate of election process, observer Vineeta Vora and the Election Commission as a party in the case for violating the rules.

Noting that it was rare that an official associated with the election process is made a respondent in a case.

‘’When the court asked them as to why they violated the rile, they had no answer. This is why they have been made respondents in the case,’’ Singhvi said.

Singhvi and Gohil said during counting for the election, 1356 ballots were received of which 427 were found invalid.

Expressing surprise at the invalidation of such a large number of ballot papers , the leaders further said that in such a situation , re-counting is to be done automatically , which was overlooked in this case.

‘’There were total 1356 ballots that had come in, and in a case where the win and loose difference is lesser than the number of ballots , it calls for a re-counting , a rule which was clearly over-ruled in this matter allegedly in favour of the BJP candidate , ‘’said  Gohil.

Further the Congress leader mentioned that the returning officer in front of the court accepted talking over the phone in the counting hall premises , while according to law , only one person , the observer is allowed to carry a cell phone in the counting hall , which is also a clear violatuon of rule.