Amid the arrival of a number of new electronic voting machines in Odisha, the state chief electoral officer (CEO) D N Gupta Friday has asked the media to refrain from speculations about early state Assembly poll.
The CEO's office said in a statement that there is no connection between EVMs being supplied to the state and timing of the state poll, which is held simultaneously with Lok Sabha electtion.
EVMs have a life span. The factory-made machines are being supplied to different states, including Odisha for use in future elections, the statement said.
Senior BJP leader and Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan had earlier dropped hints about early polls in Odisha. The arrival of a batch of 8200 new EVMs in the first phase from Electronics Corporation of India Limited, Hyderabad to the state on Tuesday triggered speculation in the media about early Assembly election in the coastal state.
Representatives of different political parties were present when the EVMs arrived at the Puri ...
