SP chief alleges EC acted under BJP's influence in UP bypolls

Etawah, Aug 9 (PTI) Samajwadi Party (SP) president and former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav on Saturday accused the Election Commission of acting under the influence of the BJP during past by-elections in the state.
     His remarks come a day after UP Chief Electoral Officer rejected Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's allegations that certain voters were registered in both Uttar Pradesh and other states, calling them "factually incorrect".
     Speaking to reporters at his late uncle Rajpal Singh Yadav's residence in Etawah, where he had gone with family for Raksha Bandhan celebration, Yadav said there has always been concern about whether the Election Commission will deliver justice.
     He alleged that in certain bypolls, including those in Kundarki, Mirapur, and most notably Faizabad, “Ayodhya, "vote theft was a small matter, under BJP's direction, the Election Commission committed dacoity and kidnapping of votes".
     Yadav claimed that during these elections, the administration predetermined which officials would be on duty, how many votes each would secure, and even facilitated multiple voting by individuals.
     "We had videos of people casting six votes each. One person was caught voting outside his constituency, and ministers were staying at polling locations," he alleged.
     The SP chief also recalled that in the previous elections, his party had accused the Election Commission of deleting 18,000 SP votes without explanation, despite those voters having voted in the past.
     He said the Commission took no action against responsible officials, which, according to him, compromised the fairness of elections.
     On another issue, Yadav slammed the state government's "decision to close schools", alleging it was an attempt to deny education to children from poor families.
     He said the government has not provided a list of closed or merged schools and asserted that primary schools in villages are essential for poor children's education.
     "If anyone is the real mafia, it is the government itself," he remarked.
     What opposition parties, including SP, have described as government's move to "close schools", the government and the ruling BJP has maintained it was "pairing of schools" done to optimise use of resources.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)