Bharatbhai Veljibhai Solanki, the Congress candidate from Gandhidham, tied an improvised noose around his neck in protest of alleged EVM tampering during the Gujarat Assembly election vote counting.
Solanki, who is currently trailing the BJP’s Malti Kishor Maheshwari by more than 12,000 votes, claimed that some EVMs were not properly sealed.
A visibly upset Solanki then sat on a dharna in protest of alleged EVM tampering in the counting room, before tying a makeshift noose around his neck. He claimed that despite his raising the issue, no action was taken.
When the votes are counted, the counting supervisor usually records the number of votes in a form. After completing Part II of Form 17C, if there is no discrepancy, the officer signs the form, has it countersigned by the candidate or his representative, and then hands it over to the Returning Officer. The RO then countersigns the form and hands it over to the officer who is compiling the Form 20 result sheet.
The candidates on the ballot, along with their representatives, are permitted in the counting room, which is where Solanki raised the issue of alleged EVM tampering.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which has not lost an election in Gujarat since 1995, may set an all-time high of 149 seats as it leads in 155 of 182 seats as of 11 a.m. The BJP has been in power in Gujarat for 27 years, but it has never won an election with such a large mandate.