Gangwar claimed two days ago that a particular booth in the Kali Bari locality did not vote in his favour, despite being a traditional Bharatiya Janata Party pocket. His complaint has now gone viral over social media in the UP.
Talking to on Monday, Additional Chief Electoral Officer, Yogeshwar Ram Misra, said that they had not yet received the minister's complaint. "It is possible that he may have sent the complaint to the Election Commission in Delhi and we can take action only if it comes to us," he said.
In his complaint letter, Gangwar, an eight-time MP from Bareilly, said that in booth number 290 (Shishu Bal Sadan) located in Kali Bari, the BJP got only 5 votes while Congress got 29 and Samajwadi Party 583. Claiming that there seems to be an error during counting, he requested a probe into the matter.
Gangwar had filed his complaint on August 14 with District Magistrate Virendra Kumar Singh, the returning officer in the general elections. While Singh did not respond to phone calls, his office, however, confirmed that complaint has been received and a probe is on.
Meanwhile, the Samajwadi Party raked up the issue to raise questions on the credibility of Electronic Voting Machines (EVM). After an unexpected drubbing at the hands of BJP in the recent Lok Sabha polls, the SP and its allies had raised doubts over EVMs.
SP national spokesperson I.P. Singh said: "Santosh Gangwar is a very senior BJP leader and his complaint should be taken seriously. The SP also requests Election Commission that all forthcoming polls in UP should revert to ballot boxes as EVMs credibility is being repeatedly questioned."
( With inputs from IANS )