Bhind Collector, SP transferred ahead of by-election

Bhind Collector Ilayaraja T and the superintendent of police Anil Singh Kushwaha were today shunted out, a week ahead of by-election to Ater Assembly seat in the district.

The development comes against the backdrop of a controversy surrounding the trial of VVPAT machine in Bhind. According to media reports the faulty VVPAT was only dispensing slips of the BJP symbol during the familiarisation exercise.

Kiran Gopal and S Saxena had replaced Ilayaraja and Kushwaha, respectively, Madhya Pradesh Chief Electoral Officer Saleena Singh told PTI. Some other officials too were transferred out of Bhind, sources said, but officials didn't confirm the report.

Bypolls in Ater Assembly constituency in Bhind district and at Bandhavgarh Assembly segment in Umaria district will take place on April 9.

The action came a day after Congress leaders Digvijay Singh and Jyotiraditya Scindia, Delhi Chief Minister and AAP convener Arvind Kejriwal, and other leaders of opposition parties met the Chief Election Commissioner Nasim Zaidi in Delhi.

They filed a complaint saying that a video of a trial of voter verifiable paper audit trail (VVPAT) machine attached to Electronic Voting Machine at Bhind on March 31 showed that it was dispensing slips with only BJP symbol, no matter which button on the EVM was pressed.

The opposition parties demanded scrapping of EVM for the coming elections. VVPAT is a machine which dispenses a slip with the symbol of the party for which a person has voted for. The slip drops in a box and the voter cannot take it home.According to media reports, the receipt showed the vote going to the BJP, irrespective of button pressed during the demonstration.

The reports also claimed that Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), Madhya Pradesh, Saleena Singh was seen telling journalists that the news should not appear in newspapers, else they would be detained at the police station. Saleena Singh, who was present during the trial and seen in the video, however yesterday denied that VVPAT dispensed only BJP slips.