Agartala: Left Front in Tripura expressed apprehension over essential electoral protections in the upcoming elections to Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (ADC).Left Front chairman Manik Dey said opposition parties remained unconvinced by election authority’s responses during an all-party meeting earlier this week, which included high-ranking administrative and police officials.Left Front raised concern about the reported use of electronic voting machines obtained from another state and questioned why the existing machines in Tripura were not being employed. Dey asked why 3,500 EVMs were brought from Madhya Pradesh for the ADC poll.They reiterated their call for the inclusion of VVPAT systems alongside EVMs, emphasising that the lack of a verifiable paper trail could erode trust of voters.The opposition parties pushed for the presence of central forces to ensure fair conditions during the voting process.However, according to Dey, the commission stated that Central Armed Police Forces would not be deployed, a stance Left Front disputed, pointing to examples from other states.
Concerns regarding security and access for polling agents were also highlighted, with Left Front arguing that commission’s reassurances fell short of guaranteeing smooth operations on election day.Dey criticised the decision to forgo web-casting from polling stations, with the commission reportedly citing financial limitations. He deemed this rationale unacceptable, insisting that sufficient resources must be allocated to ensure free and fair elections.
