Polling-agent, arrested for influencing voters, asked woman to 'pick' lotus
On Sunday, a polling agent was arrested in Faridabad for trying to influence at least three female voters inside the booth. Had it not been for a video, which went viral, the man might have remained scot-free. And now, one of the women has said that she was asked to "pick" lotus (the symbol of Bharatiya Janata Party). Here's what went down.
A bit about the case which triggered row
The incident took place at Asawati village in Faridabad parliamentary constituency, which voted on May 12. In the video, the agent, later identified as Giriraj Singh, can be seen getting up from his seat. He went towards EVM when women cast their votes. He obviously rigged the fair process, and shockingly no one inside the booth interfered. Initially, Election Commission said polls weren't "vitiated".
Here is the video which went viral
Reportedly, Singh asked woman to vote for BJP
One of the women, named Shobha, who was seen in the video told NDTV that Singh asked her to vote for BJP. "But I told him that it was my choice, and I will vote for any party I want. I left soon afterward," she went on. Shobha revealed that she didn't complain as she wanted to return home quickly to her ailing daughter.
On the other hand, Singh said he was 'helping' women
In his defense, Singh said he didn't know he was violating poll code by going near EVMs and only wanted to "help". "There are two voting machines and 28 candidates in the (Faridabad Lok Sabha) constituency, and the women of this village are illiterate. Even educated people get confused when it comes to using these machines.," he told the news channel.
Meanwhile, EC has ordered re-polling in the booth
The polling watchdog's first reaction on the trampling of rules was denial. EC said the man was arrested and added it has sought a report from officials. Notably, Singh was released on bail, hours after his arrest. Later, EC ordered a re-polling in the booth on May 19. The Returning Officer 10 of Faridabad constituency was replaced by IAS officer Ashok Kumar Garg.
Here are the sections under which FIR was lodged
"An FIR was lodged under Indian Penal Code Sections 171 C (undue influence at elections) and 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by a public servant) and Section 135 of RP Act 1951 against the polling agent, Giriraj Singh," EC said in a statement.
EC has also suspended officers for their laxity
Further, EC added that presiding officer Amit Atri has been suspended for "dereliction of duty". Criminal action is also being initiated against him. "Micro observer Sonal Gulati has not reported the incident correctly for which the commission has barred her from any election-related work for three years," the statement read. Garg will join duty on Tuesday afternoon.
