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Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader Shashi Panja has written to the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of West Bengal expressing concern over "intermittent CCTV disruptions" in strong rooms and seeking immediate access to complete surveillance records.
In her letter dated May 1, Panja raised objections over reported interruptions in CCTV surveillance at multiple strong room locations, stating that such lapses could compromise the integrity and security of stored electronic voting machines (EVMs) and VVPATs. She cited reports of disruptions and inconsistencies from several locations, including strong rooms in Kolkata, Jalpaiguri, Gaighata Assembly constituency, Chandernagore Government College, and Jangipur Polytechnic College, among many others. Calling the matter serious, Panja said uninterrupted 24x7 CCTV monitoring of strong rooms, with continuous recording and access, is mandated under Election Commission guidelines and any lapse raises serious concerns about the safety of stored machines and further weakens the public confidence in an electoral process where trust is already under strain, the letter stated. The TMC leader demanded that authorities immediately provide a complete instance-wise report of CCTV malfunction, disruption or downtime; furnish uninterrupted surveillance footage and logs covering the affected periods; restore full real-time monitoring functionality; and ensure continuous access to surveillance for authorised representatives in line with Election Commission protocols. She further warned that failure to preserve and provide complete CCTV records could invite adverse inference regarding the integrity of the monitoring process and said the party would be compelled to pursue further action if corrective steps were not taken promptly. "If full transparency is not ensured forthwith, we will be compelled to pursue appropriate agitation based on democratic principles," the letter stated. Earlier, while addressing the media after meeting the Additional Chief Electoral Officer on Friday, Shashi Panja accused that the strong room CCTVs are not working properly in some places. West Bengal Chief Electoral Officer Manoj Kumar Agarwal on Thursday reiterated that EVMs strong rooms are "safe and secure" in response to TMC allegations that there was tampering with EVMs, asserting that there is no "controversy" in the incident. It comes after the TMC alleged that the BJP "in active collusion" with the Election Commission, "is opening ballot boxes without the presence of any relevant party stakeholders". The counting of votes will take place on May 4. (ANI)
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