On Sunday, the Congress party implored its members not to lose heart over the exit polls, which forecasted an NDA triumph on Saturday. Instead, they were instructed to remain vigilant and resolute on the vote counting day on June 4. “I have been in constant communication with our candidates and party members since the polling concluded on Saturday. I have urged them not to be discouraged by the exit poll predictions, which are manipulated. Instead, they should stay composed, focused, and vigilant on June 4 when the votes will be tallied. Prior to that, they should keep an eye on the strongrooms where the EVMs used in the polling are stored,” stated AICC in-charge of Uttar Pradesh Avinash Pande to ETV Bharat.
The directive, according to the AICC official, stemmed from a suspicion within the party that there may have been or could be tampering with the EVMs. “We have encountered numerous complaints regarding the malfunctioning of the EVMs during the seven phases of polling. We reported these issues to the Election Commission, but no action was taken. Previously, we also lodged several complaints about the BJP violating the model poll code, but nothing was done. Therefore, we need to stay vigilant on our own. These national elections are crucial, and we cannot afford to be complacent on counting day. All our months of hard work would be in vain if we let our guard down,” Pande emphasized.
Insiders within the party revealed that the INDIA bloc had directed all its candidates and workers to obtain Form 17 C from the poll officials to verify the exact count of votes published by the EC. Additionally, the poll panel’s decision not to allow candidates’ counting agents at the counting tables on June 4 had raised suspicions among opposition parties. It was anticipated that a group of INDIA bloc leaders would appeal to the EC to correct this irregularity to ensure a transparent counting process.
“Initially, there was an 11-day delay in publishing the voting data for phase 1, which only occurred after the top court intervened. Furthermore, the data updated after successive phases of polling showed an increase in the actual numbers, again raising doubts,” a senior AICC official remarked.
Party insiders noted that the current situation across the country mirrored the 2004 national polls when exit polls predicted an NDA victory, but the UPA ultimately secured more seats and formed the alliance government.
“We expect the 2004 results to repeat in 2024. Exit polls were proven wrong in the 2004 national polls, as well as in the 2015 Bihar assembly polls and the 2023 Karnataka assembly polls. Our workers should maintain high morale ahead of the counting day,” AICC functionary Ajoy Kumar conveyed to ETV Bharat.
Key state leaders informed the high command on Sunday that the exit polls were designed to demoralize the opposition and were unreliable. They asserted that their own field reports contradicted the exit polls and that the INDIA bloc was poised to form the next government at the Centre.
Punjab CLP leader Partap Singh Bajwa asserted that the NDA would not secure any seats out of the 13 in the northern state, while the Congress was projected to win 10 seats. Rajasthan Congress chief Govind Singh Dotasara claimed the party would win more than 12 out of the 25 seats.
UP Congress leader Ajay Rai predicted that the Congress-SP alliance would significantly contribute to the INDIA bloc’s victory in the state. Karnataka Congress chief and deputy chief minister DK Shiv Kumar described the exit poll projections for the state as surprising and asserted that the Congress would win 18 out of the 28 seats. Maharashtra Congress chief Nana Patole anticipated that the Congress-Shiv Sena UBT-NCP-SP alliance would secure 38-40 out of the 48 seats in the western state.