Actions speak louder than words, poll body chief Rajiv Kumar amid criticism
Rejecting allegations that the Election Commission lacks independence and is partial, Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar on Thursday asserted that "actions and outcomes" speak louder than words.
He also said the poll panel is aware of the efforts which are mounted to create "negative atmosphere" ahead of elections.
Responding to a series of questions on reasons behind "delay" in announcing the Gujarat assembly polls, Mr Kumar said at times, after a cricket match, the losing team blames the umpire. "There is no third umpire here. But the results are a testimony (of the Election Commission's neutrality)," the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) said.
"Coming to the larger question of independence (of the commission), actions and outcomes speak louder than words. If we say the results are not correct, then it is possibly the biggest insult of the Indian voter," Mr Kumar said.
The assembly elections in Gujarat will be held in two phases on December 1 and 5 with the counting of votes on December 8 along with that of Himachal Pradesh. Of the total 182 assembly seats in Gujarat, voting for 89 seats will be held on December 1 and the balance 93 seats on December 5.
Election after election since the country got its Independence, a large number of assembly elections -- results have shown that at times those who are critical of the commission have got surprising results, Mr Kumar observed.
"I don't want to go into details as to how many times it has happened. But any party or candidate who have raised questions, they have realised that they should not have raised the issue as results have come in their favour," he told reporters at a press conference to announce the Gujarat poll schedule.
He said there are instances that before elections begin, "long letters" are received by the Election Commission (EC) from parties to junk EVMs. "But the same machines gives them the desired result. Then the questions stop, the results are accepted," Mr Kumar said without naming parties.
The Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party have questioned the reliability of EVMs in the recent past.
The CEC said the independence of the EC is not new for the EC. "It is a legacy we are proud of. It is the strength of the results announced by our predecessors," Mr Kumar said.
The Congress on Thursday said the EC must give an explanation to the people of the country as to why it announced the polls to Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat assemblies on separate dates even though the votes for both would be counted on the same day.
Congress' Gujarat in-charge Raghu Sharma alleged that the BJP got time to hold several rallies on official expense and misused public resources to the hilt in Gujarat.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)