Voting discrepancies in all Lok Sabha seats of some states: ADR

Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Bihar, Rajasthan, West Bengal and Madhya Pradesh recorded discrepancies in voting in all their Lok Sabha seats during the recent general elections held from April-June, according to the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR).

Earlier, the ADR had reported that 538 Lok Sabha constituencies across India recorded discrepancies, indicating a mismatch between the votes polled on electronic voting machines (EVMs) and the votes counted.

At a press conference on Monday at Delhi's Press Club, ADR released detailed state-wise data on these discrepancies. According to the organisation, Andhra Pradesh recorded the highest number of discrepancies in votes (89,499) followed by Odisha with 65,269.

Uttar Pradesh, a politically crucial state currently governed by the BJP, recorded 60,084 discrepancies in votes. Notably, the BJP's performance in Uttar Pradesh declined, with the party securing only 33 seats compared to the 63 it won in 2019.

Accusing the Election Commission of India (ECI) of failing to provide a reasonable explanation for declaring the election results before releasing the final and authentic data on vote count and the mismatch in EVM votes polled and counted, ADR recommended that the ECI conduct a thorough and accurate reconciliation of data before declaring the final results of any election.

"It is not only a legal requirement for the Election Commission of India to declare final election results based on genuine data, but it is also a constitutional duty as envisaged under Article 324 read with Article 19(1)(a) of the Indian Constitution," reads the statement issued by ADR.

Saying the ECI's failure to address and take appropriate steps against the egregious incidents of violations, illegalities and irregularities led to "trepidation in the mind of the electorate", the ADR offered the following recommendations:

• In order to conduct free and fair elections, ECI should carry out actual and accurate reconciliation of data before the declaration of the final result of any election

• In order to uphold voter confidence, it is necessary that the ECI should immediately disclose on its website scanned legible copies of Form 17C Part-I (account of votes recorded) of all polling stations which contains the authenticated figures for votes polled, within 48 hours of the close of polling.

• In order to maintain the credibility of the conduct of elections devoid of any manipulation or illegality, ECI should also upload scanned legible copies of Form 17C Part-II which contains the candidate-wise result of counting after the compilation of results of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections

• In order to ensure easy accessibility of the data, a tabulation of the constituency and polling station wise figures of voter turnout in absolute numbers and in percentage form must also be disclosed.

• In order to maintain the purity and legitimacy of elections, ECI should publish the total number of electors in each Parliamentary constituency, total number of voters as noted in register of voters and number of voters as per EVM for all PCs that have gone to polls

• In order to remove any/all apprehensions from the minds of the voters, ECI should provide the following information in the public domain for the 2019 and 2024 Lok Sabha elections and for all future elections i.e. statutory forms 17C, 20, 21C, 21D and 21E

• In order to be more accountable, answerable and transparent to the electorate, ECI should not only investigate the discrepancies found in the 17th and 18th Lok Sabha election results but also formulate a robust procedure for all future elections for the investigation of any discrepancy found in election data