YS Jagan’s flip-flop on veracity of EVMs, now he prefers paper ballot

AMARAVATI: Joining the bandwagon of critics of EVMs such as Elan Musk, Sam Pitroda, and the entire Congress, former Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy on Tuesday took to X and said that paper ballot was better than the electronic gadgets that could be easily fudged.

“Just as justice should not only be served, but should also appear to have been served, so should democracy not only prevail but must appear to be prevalent undoubtedly. In electoral practices across the world in almost every advanced democracy, paper ballots are used, not EVMs. We too must move towards the same in upholding the true spirit of our democracy.” Jagan said.

However, he was not against the EVMs right from the beginning. In 2019 he said that 80 percent of the voters could easily vote and also find the response in the Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) machine display attached to the voting console. “Only after the voters cross-checked and satisfied they came out of the polling booth. None of the 80 percent of the voters complained against the EVMs,” Jagan said.

He further explained the foolproof nature of the EVMs by saying that if he voted for the Fan (YSRCP)symbol and the VVPAT showed Cycle (TDP), he would not keep quiet. “If there is a mismatch I will then make a complaint at the booth. Because voters were satisfied, they did not complain,” he said.

He criticised TDP Chief Nara Chandrababu Naidu for feigning innocence that he didn’t know where his vote had gone Jagan said that Naidu was playing a villain’s role.