According to the deputy district election officer and deputy collector, Meenal Kalaskar, EVMs' data will be verified, which were registered during the counting of votes in November 2024, in the presence of the candidate's representatives.The Pune district election office has suspended inspection and verification of electronic voting machines (EVMs) of 27 polling stations in Hadapsar constituency after NCP(SP) candidate Prashant Jagtap pointed out that his election petition was pending in the Bombay High Court.The same process however will be executed for EVMs of two polling stations in Khadakwasla assembly constituency.The district election office had earlier announced inspecting and verifying EVMs of 27 polling stations in Hadapsar constituency following an application by NCP(SP) candidate Prashant Jagtap and of two polling stations in Khadakwasla assembly after NCP(SP) candidate Sachin Dodke’s application. It was scheduled from July 25 to August 2.“The inspection and verification of EVMs of 27 polling stations in Hadapsar constituency has been suspended as the applicant has communicated about the pending election petition,” said deputy district election officer and deputy collector Meenal Kalaskar.The move was taken after consulting with the Election Commission of India, she said adding, “Inspection and verification of EVMs in two polling stations in Khadakwasla constituency on an application of NCP(SP) candidate Sachin Dodke will be done on July 25.”After losing, Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) candidates had alleged irregularities in the November 2024 Maharashtra Assembly elections.The checking and verification of the EVMs, which will also involve mock polls, will be done at the Bhosari godown in the district, where the voting machines are stored in a strong room. The entire process will be carried out as per the Election Commission (EC)’s standard operating procedure (SOP).Story continues below this adEach EVM comprising a control unit and a VVPAT (voter verified paper audit trail) machine with 1,400 votes would be checked, official sources said.According to the deputy district election officer and deputy collector, Meenal Kalaskar, EVMs’ data will be verified, which were registered during the counting of votes in November 2024, in the presence of the candidate’s representatives. “The data will be erased and a mock poll for each EVM consisting of a control unit and a VVPAT will be conducted to further verify the operation of the machine,” Kalaskar said, adding that a final report will be submitted to the EC for any further action. Dodke was defeated by BJP candidate Bhimrao Tapkir by 52,000 votes in Khadakwasla assembly seat. “I will participate in the inspection and verification of EVMs of two polling stations which I had asked for. I had demanded that VVPAT slips be counted with EVM data, however they are not doing so. I have reiterated in writing that VVPAT slips of respective EVMs are counted to verify the count. If they don’t agree, then we will register our protest,” said Dodke.He said the mock poll of EVMs didn’t make sense as it had already been done during the assembly election. “They need to verify the EVMs by counting the VVPAT slips of the election with respective EVMs to clear the doubt,” said Dodke.Click here to join Express Pune WhatsApp channel and get a curated list of our stories© The Indian Express Pvt LtdTags:pune