Lucknow, Oct 26 The Samajwadi Party on Monday asked the Uttar Pradesh chief electoral officer not to deploy outsourced employees on October 27 to count votes polled for the 11 Legislative Council seats.
In a memorandum submitted to the chief electoral officer on the directions of Samajwadi Party national president and former chief minister Akhilesh Yadav, the party’s state president Shyam Lal Pal also demanded a complete ban on the use of violet-coloured sketch pens at counting centres.
“Outsourced employees should not be deployed for counting of votes for 11 Legislative Council seats on October 27,” a party statement quoted Pal as saying.
In its memorandum, the party said counting for the next round should not begin until counting for the ongoing round is completed at every table and its results announced through loudspeakers, on the Election Commission’s website and at the returning officer’s table.
The Samajwadi Party further sought the installation of high-quality CCTV cameras not only at every counting table but also at other key locations to ensure that all activities at the counting centres were clearly recorded.
The party called for the counting for all 11 Legislative Council seats to be conducted in a transparent, impartial, independent and fearless manner.
In a separate memorandum, Samajwadi Party candidates Lal Bihari Yadav and Ashutosh Sinha from the Varanasi teachers’ and graduates’ constituencies demanded that only government employees be deployed for counting duties.
They warned that they would oppose the counting process if outsourced personnel were appointed as counting staff, holding the Election Commission of India responsible for any resulting situation.
A letter from Kanti Singh, the party candidate from the Lucknow graduates’ constituency, was also attached to the memorandum, along with the representations submitted by Yadav and Sinha.
(PTI News)
