RAIPUR: The BJP on Friday urged the chief electoral officer (CEO), Chhattisgarh, to keep aloof Bijapur district collector, Rajendra Katara, from vote counting duty on December 3.
The BJP delegation submitted a memorandum accusing Katara of displaying bias favoring the ruling Congress and its candidates throughout the election process in the Maoist-hit Bijapur district, which went to the polls on November 7.
In the memorandum, the BJP highlighted several instances of alleged biased behavior by the district collector, including campaigning for the Congress party, acting as per instructions of Congress candidates, and failure to provide serial numbers of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs).
The party had previously lodged complaints against Katara, but the delegation expressed dissatisfaction with the response.
The BJP also raised concerns about the initiation of voting without canceling mock polling in the EVMs and accused the district collector of frequenting the residence of a Congress candidate.
Demanding a fair and unbiased counting process, the BJP urged for the removal of the collector from counting duty and requested videography of the counting. Additionally, the party reiterated its demand for a re-election in the Bijapur constituency due to the suspicious role of the collector. Despite prior requests, the BJP stated that its earlier demands to remove the returning officer and the collector from polling duty had been unsuccessful.