In what could trigger a fresh duel between the ruling Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government and the Opposition Bharatiya Janata Party in the state, Maharashtra Assembly Speaker Nana Patole has said that he has asked the state legislature to frame a law to give voters the option of using ballot papers besides EVMs.
A meeting, which was attended by State Medical Education Minister Amit Deshmukh, state's chief electoral officer Baldev Singh and others, was held at the Vidhan Bhawan on Tuesday to discuss the matter.
Raising questions over the use of Electronic Voting Machines, Patole told news agency PTI,"I have asked the state government to frame a law in this connection. The state government can frame a law. In the past, doubts were raised during the elections (about EVM tampering)."
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Voting is a fundamental right and one should have the option of casting vote using ballot papers or EVM, he added.
Several opposition parties in the country have in the past alleged tampering of EVMs and demanded reverting to the ballot paper system.
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However, the BJP had previously hit out at the opposition parties for raising doubts over the credibility of EVMs.
(With PTI Inputs)
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