Agartala, Feb 3 (TIWN):For the first time, about 14 lakh odd tribal voters expected to push the button of Electronic Voting Machines (EVM) against the tradition of casting ballots in upcoming ADC election slated for end of April.
State election authority has sought permission from Election Commission of India (ECI) to allow borrowing of about 1300 EVMs from it’s stock for ADC election. However, the decision has not come yet but indications are positive, said a senior official of election department.

The EVMs have been using in Tripura since 2003 assembly polls and in 2010 urban local bodies’ election; except village Panchayats and ADC, which assured the success of left front all the cases.

Officials however, stated that ruling left front is desperate to use EVM in ADC poll and accordingly, it’s election authority sought permission from ECI. Allegedly, left front is well-equipped to manipulate EVM casting in its favor for last all elections by using all public machineries.

When entire world including US shifted conducting election by EVMs after getting proof that these are easy to manipulate the accounts of casting, leftists in Tripura has been through it’s back bencher engineers of civil and electrical streams arguing EVM is full-proof method of election.

According to highly placed sources in Tripura administration, in last assembly poll some selected EVMs were manipulated through government machinery to increase the vote value of CPI-M candidates in presence of the opposition representatives taking the advantage of their poor knowledge in technology.

The manipulation of EVMs in last assembly poll was done by well-trained two engineers brought from Hyderabad during randomization at the initial stage. In phased manner the system was improvised in subsequent system and final thing was done during allotment of EVM buttons to the contesting candidates.

“The CPI-M party had supplied the list of the prospective candidates of the constituencies well in advance. Since alphabetically, EVM buttons are allotted, the engineers programmed the vote value of the buttons that is very easy to do. After randomization at initial stage, CPI-M ensured it’s victory and rest was done during voting,” officials added.

Unless fresh EVMs with due checking of program value by independent experts outside the state are bought, it is next to impossible for any political party to defeat CPI-M in Tripura even if everyone vote against them, the official claimed.