"Unexplained Slowdown": Congress Complains To Poll Body On Haryana Results

The Congress has filed a formal complaint with the Election Commission regarding a delay in publishing the leads and results of the Haryana election, party leader Jairam Ramesh said.

Oct 8, 2024 - 04:00
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"Unexplained Slowdown": Congress Complains To Poll Body On Haryana Results

The Congress has filed a formal complaint with the Election Commission regarding a delay in publishing the leads and results of the Haryana election, party leader Jairam Ramesh said.

The party - bidding to claiming a hat-trick of wins for the BJP in the Hindi heartland state - will allege data is not being uploaded and published as quickly as it is for the Jammu and Kashmir election.

"We are lodging a complaint (and) hope the EC will answer our questions. The results of 10-11 rounds are out... but only four to five rounds are updated on the site," he told news agency ANI.

"Like the Lok Sabha election, in Haryana we are again witnessing slowing down of uploading up-to- date trends by the Election Commission. Is the BJP trying to build pressure on administration by sharing outdated and misleading trends?" Mr Ramesh posted on X earlier this morning.

The Congress raced into an early lead in Haryana as postal votes were counted, only for the BJP to stage a thrilling comeback late morning as the ballots were opened. The ruling party then raced into a lead of its own, which it has held since; at noon the BJP held 48 seats - two over the majority mark.

Early celebrations at the Congress' Delhi HQ ground to a halt as the party - which is set to win the first Jammu and Kashmir election in a decade - contemplated a third straight defeat in Haryana.

Mr Ramesh, however, insisted the party remains confident.

"There is no need to be disheartened..." he told ANI, "Mind games are being played. There is no need to be disheartened. We are going to get the mandate. Congress will form the government."

The BJP's Sudhanshu Trivedi responded swiftly, declaring the complaining meant the Congress had "accepted defeat". "If Congress has started pointing fingers at Election Commission then we should understand they have accepted defeat..." he told reporters, "Per current trends I feel we are moving to an important win and Congress has started taking precautionary measures for future defeat."