'Very easy to blame EVMs': Owaisi blames Congress for Haryana poll result

Asaduddin Owaisi

AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi on Wednesday criticised the Congress for blaming EVMs after its defeat in the Haryana assembly elections.

"It is very easy to blame EVMs. You win due to EVMs and when you lose, then it is wrong. My opinion is that the BJP should have lost this state. There were many factors which were going against them,” Owaisi told ANI.

He said that it was concerning that Congress could not defeat the BJP despite so many factors reportedly going against the ruling party. He attributed the BJP win to Congress’s internal conflicts.

"Congress should have taken advantage of the 10 years of anti-incumbency, but it seems that due to their internal differences, the BJP benefited. If you give the BJP even a little opening in an electoral battle, they will capitalise on it," he said.

On Tuesday, Congress leaders raised concerns about EVMs in Hisar, Mahendragarh, and Panipat. According to them, BJP won on machines with a 99 per cent battery, while Congress won on units with 60-70 per cent battery levels.

Rahul Gandhi described the Haryana Assembly election results as "unexpected" and assured that complaints from various constituencies would be taken up with the Election Commission of India (ECI).

The BJP won Haryana for a third consecutive time. In doing so, the BJP defied an anti-incumbency of 10 years, as well as exit polls, that had projected a massive win for the opposition Congress.

The BJP won 48 seats in the 90-member House while the Congress bagged 37 seats. Three independents and two candidates of the INLD also registered wins.