All arrangements have been put in place for recounting of votes for the Bellary Lok Sabha seat on Saturday, as per the directions of the Supreme Court.
This is for the second time in the country (first time with regard to Parliament election) that recounting of votes is being held after electronic voting machines (EVMs) were introduced. Recounting of votes in Hatia Assembly constituency in Jharkhand was held some time back.
Of the five election observers deputed by the Election Commission, R.I. Mopalwar, a senior IAS officer from Maharashtra; Sumit Mukherjee, Secretary Election Commission; Kumar Rajiv and Rakesh Kumar have arrived and are overseeing the arrangements.
ADVERTISEMENT
Another observer, Sanjay Bhoosareddy, a senior IAS officer from Uttar Pradesh, will be arriving here on Saturday morning.
Briefing mediapersons about the arrangements for recounting, Deputy Commissioner and Returning Officer Amlan Aditya Biswas said that the EVMs had been shifted to the strong room. As many as 98 tables had been set up to count the votes from 1,589 EVMs and complete the process in 18 rounds. “The recounting process, which will commence at 8 a.m., is expected to be completed by 2.00 pm,” he said.