Kannur (Kerala), April 4 KPCC chief Sunny Joseph alleged on Saturday that the ballot boxes being used in the northern Kerala district for collecting votes from local voters have wide openings through which ballots can be easily removed, and he has sought the intervention of the CEC and CEO to ensure free and fair elections.
Joseph claimed that when he brought this issue to the attention of the district collector, the official became angry with him instead of assuring him that he would investigate the matter.
The Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president alleged that the collector was "acting as an agent of the ruling front" and has sought the intervention of the Chief Election Commission (CEC) and the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of the state to ensure free and fair elections.
He made these allegations at a press conference held here, where he claimed that the opening of the ballot box was too wide, and therefore, anyone could remove the ballots from it.
"It needs to be explained why such a large opening was created on the box. This can be misused or tampered with. The ballot papers can be changed after they are removed. This is an attempt to sabotage the polling process," Joseph alleged. The Assembly elections will be held in Kerala on April 9.