Thiruvananthapuram
The Congress party in Kerala has criticized the conduct of the Lok Sabha elections held on April 26, alleging terrible mismanagement. V. D. Satheesan, Leader of Opposition in the Kerala Assembly, wrote to the Election Commission of India (ECI) seeking a thorough investigation into the delays and irregularities during the polls.
Satheesan claimed that some voters had to wait over four hours to cast their votes, leading many to leave without voting. He accused election officials of negligence and stated that faulty Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) and a poorly managed voters’ list contributed to the problems. The Congress leader also noted that polling hours were not extended in booths with EVM malfunctions.
Despite these criticisms, Chief Electoral Officer Sanjay Kaul said the election process in Kerala was completely satisfactory. He mentioned that 95% of the 25,231 polling booths completed voting by 6 PM, and 99% by 8 PM. Delays in some booths were due to high turnout late in the day, he added.
However, the overall voter turnout for Kerala’s 20 Lok Sabha seats was 71.16%, a significant drop from the 77.84% recorded in the 2019 elections. Satheesan’s letter calls for an ECI inquiry to address these concerns.
