The State police investigation into the accusation that some elements had faked Election Commission of India (ECI) voter ID cards as proof of identity to rig the Youth Congress elections that saw Rahul Mamkoottathil emerge as the State president-designate appeared to get embarrassingly close to the organisation’s rank and file.
The probe ordered based on complaints filed by the Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) resulted in the police searching the homes of at least three Youth Congress workers in Pathanamthitta and Adoor.
The Special Investigation Team (SIT) headed by Deputy Commissioner of Police, Law and Order, Thiruvananthapuram, Nidhin Raj, seized their mobile phones and laptops.
An official said investigators might record the arrest of the suspects on Wednesday to seek a court order for a cyber forensic probe into the suspects’ digital devices.
Their possible arrest on Wednesday might help the government blunt the propaganda advantage gained by the Congress, which was belligerently protesting the alleged attack by supporters of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) [CPI(M)] on Youth Congress workers who staged a black flag protest against Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan’s motorcade in Kannur on Monday.
The Museum police had launched an investigation last week into the accusation that “dubious electors” had used bogus ECI voter ID cards as proof of identity to rig the online Youth Congress (YC) elections and tilt the playing field to the advantage a particular faction. An estimated 7.5 lakh persons participated in the YC elections.
CEO moved
Both the CPI(M) and the BJP had portrayed the accusation as high treason, a breach of national security, and a threat to democracy. They had moved the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), Kerala, Sanjay Kaul, against the Youth Congress. Mr. Kaul had sought an explanation from the Youth Congress leadership and alerted the Election Commission of India. He had also sought a report from the police.
The Congress leadership had welcomed the investigation. Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee president K. Sudhakaran did not rule out the fraud. The scandal has reportedly deepened the fissures between opposing factions in the Congress.
