LIVE! RSS leader's killing: Punjab govt to hand over probe to NIA

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Thu, 19 October 2017

RSS leader's killing: Punjab govt to hand over probe to NIA

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20:31 RJD to hold another 'grand rally' against Centre, state govt

The Rashtriya Janata Dal today said it would hold another 'grand rally' to mobilise the opposition parties against the National Democratic Alliance governments at the Centre and in Bihar.

RJD supremo Lalu Prasad told reporters in Patna that the date for the rally would be announced after consultation with the other party leaders.

The RJD, which is the main opposition party in Bihar, had on August 27 organised a rally at the Gandhi Maidan in Patna, which saw participation from West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, rebel Janata Dal-Uniited leader Sharad Yadav and senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad among others.

Prasad said the JD-U needed to take note that the Centre was in favour of holding the next Bihar Assembly election simultaneously with the Lok Sabha election.

"This would drastically cut short the life of the present Assembly in Bihar, which was elected in 2015, and the ruling JD-U MLAs ought to take note of it," he said.

Prasad and his family members are facing a probe into various corruption charges. -- PTI

The Punjab government has decided to hand over the probe into the killing of RSS leader Ravinder Gosain in Ludhiana to the National Investigation Agency.

Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh issued orders in this regard today while announcing a Rs 5 lakh compensation for the deceased's family and a government job for one of his progeny. -- PTI

Gosain lost his wife to cancer some years ago and is survived by four children.

Orders regarding an NIA probe were issued by the chief minister on the request by an RSS delegation that met him at his residence today, an official spokesperson said.

The chief minister acceded to their request taking into account the "international ramifications" of the case, he added.

Investigations into similar incidents in the past suggest that the handlers of the assailants were operating from foreign soil, said the spokesperson, adding that Singh felt that with the NIA stepping in, there would be better

coordination between the central agencies and the state police.

Two unidentified motorcycle-borne assailants had shot dead RSS leader Gosain in Kailash Nagar in Ludhiana on Tuesday.

Sharing the delegation's concern over the brazen killing, the chief minister strongly condemned the act, saying there was no place for such violence in the state.

Asserting that his government would not tolerate such lawlessness, Singh said it was taking all measures to prevent such targeted killings.

Singh assured the delegation that the state police was working hard to solve all the previous similar cases and that he had issued directions for expediting the investigations.

No effort would be spared to catch the culprits and bring them to book in cases of targeted killings, which were clearly aimed at destabilising the state and destroying its peace, said the chief minister.

19:51

Sensex dives 194.39 pts to end at 32,389.96 in the first session of Samvat 2074; Nifty falls 64.30 pts to 10,146.55.

19:18 Sensex off to positive start in Muhurat trading, rises 72 pts

Benchmark Sensex rose over 72 points in the opening trade of a special Muhurat trading session today to mark the start of Hindu Samvat year 2074.

The Sensex was trading higher by 72.40 points, or 0.22 per cent to quote at 32,656.75. The gauge has shed 49.29 points in the previous two sessions.

Sectoral indices led by realty, capital goods, consumer durables, healthcare, teck, FMCG and oil & gas were trading in the positive zone, with gains up to 0.65 per cent.

The broader NSE Nifty too edged up by 1.10 points, or 0.01 per cent to 10,211.95.

Brokers said indices were supported by token buying activity as investors and funds opened their new accounts on the first session of Samvat year 2074.

The Sensex gained 4,642.84 points, or 16.61 per cent, in the Hindu Samvat year 2073, while the broader NSE Nifty surged 1,572.85 points, or 18.20 per cent during this period. -- PTI

India thrashed Malaysia 6-2 in the second Super 4s match at the Asia Cup Hockey in Dhaka on Thursday.

Akashdeep Singh, Harmanpreet Singh, SK Uthappa, Gurjant Singh, SV Sunil and Sardar Singh scored for India, while Razie Rahim and Ramadan Rosli scored the consolation goals for Malaysia.

Five persons, including four members of outfit Karni Sena and one from Vishwa Hindu Parishad, were arrested today for allegedly vandalising a rangoli inspired by an upcoming film Padmavati at a mall in Surat, the

police said.

The police had on October 16 registered an FIR against a group of people for vandalising a rangoli created by a local artist (an artwork created on floor using colourful vermilion) at Rahul Raj Mall in Umra area on Sunday last.

Based on a video, which shows vandals shouting "Jai Shri Ram" as they damaged the art work, police arrested them.

Talking to reporters, Surat Commissioner of Police Satish Sharma also urged mall owners to come forward to lodge a case if such vandalism takes place.

"We have arrested five persons, four of them belonging to outfit Karni Sena and one from the VHP. More persons are likely to be arrested as the video footage recovered by us shows 8-10 persons involved in the activity," Sharma said.

"I also want to make it clear that the police will deal with strictness against any such action. Freedom of expression is everyone's right in a democracy, but vandalism will not be allowed," he said.

The arrested persons have been identified as Vikramsinh Sekhawat, Shambhusinh Rathod, Narendra Chaudhary, Shailendra Rajput and Sanjaysinh Gohil, said the official.

They have been arrested under various sections of Indian Penal Code including 141, 149 (unlawful assembly), 451 (trespassing) and 427 (mischief causing damage).

The rangoli showed the film's actress Deepika Padukone in her titular role as Padmavati in the Sanjay Leela Bhansali directed movie.

Raising questions of freedom of expression, Padukone had yesterday said she was heartbroken by the attack on a rangoli inspired by her upcoming film Padmavati and drew Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Smriti Irani's attention.

"Absolutely heart breaking to see the recent attack on artist Karan and his artwork! Disgusting and appalling to say the least!" she tweeted along with a photograph of the rangoli.

"This has to stop now and action must be taken @smritiirani," she said on Twitter. --PTI

18:36 China's GDP expands 6.9 pc in first 3 quarters

China's economy continued its firm growth in the first three quarters of this year, with gross domestic product expanding 6.9 per cent year on year to about USD 8.96 trillion, official data showed today.

The growth rate held steady from a 6.9-per cent increase in the first half of this year and is well above the government's target for the year of 6.5 per cent.

In the third quarter, China's GDP was up 6.8 per cent year on year, compared with 6.9 per cent in the second quarter, the National Bureau of Statistics said.

This is the ninth straight quarter for China to see growth of 6.7 per cent to 6.9 per cent, maintaining medium- high growth and adding to evidence of further economic resilience, NBS spokesperson Xing Zhihong told reporters.

"The Chinese economy has maintained steady growth with a positive outlook in the first three quarters," state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

Improvements have been made in both economic structure and growth quality, and new growth engines are gaining steam, said Xing.

The service sector expanded 7.8 per cent year on year in the first three quarters, outpacing a 3.7-per cent increase in primary industry and 6.3 per cent in secondary industry, according to the NBS.

In the Jan-Sept period, China's value-added industrial output expanded 6.7 per cent year on year, faster than the 6- per cent increase a year ago. Retail sales of consumer goods grew 10.4 per cent year on year, the NBS said. -- PTI

The Maharashtra government on Thursday released Rs 4,000 crores under the first phase of the farm loan waiver scheme. It is expected to benefit more than eight lakh farmers of the state.

Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis announced that the remaining Rs 800 crore of the scheme will be in the form of incentives for 3.78 lakh farmers, who are paying back their loans on time.

Fadnavis, who was present at an event organised for disbursement of the waivers, said that the release of funds under the scheme, announced in June, will be in continuous process. The CM added that his government will complete almost 80 percent of the disbursement by November 15.

The total cost of the scheme is Rs 34,000 crore.

Fadnavis said that the Maharashtra government's work extends beyond relief and rehabilitation, and added that the continuous investments in the sector for the next 5 years will ensure sustainable development. --ANI

17:59 PM Modi to visit Kedarnath tomorrow

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Kedarnath tomorrow, a day before the portals of the Himalayan shrine close for the winters.

The prime minister will also lay the foundation stones for a slew of reconstruction projects in Kedarpuri, including renovation of Adi Guru Shankaracharya's tomb which was devastated in the catastrophic flash floods of 2013.

Modi is also likely to address a public meeting near the famed temple located around 11, 660 feet above the sea level, party sources said.

Security has been tightened around the Jollygrant airport where the prime minister is likely to arrive around 8.30 am before leaving for Kedarnath, DIG Garhwal Range Pushpak Jyoti said.

He will be welcomed at the airport by Uttarakhand Governor K K Paul, Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat and officials before he heads for the Himalayan shrine, the officer said.

Modi is scheduled to spend around two hours laying the foundation stones of a series of reconstruction projects, he said.

Elaborate security arrangements have also been made at Kedarnath in view of the prime minister's visit, the DIG said.

In view of the PM's visit and Diwali, the temple has been decked up with flowers and lights, and most priests have decided not to go home to celebrate the festival.

The chief minister and the governor will accompany Modi to the Himalayan temple which is scheduled to close for the winters at 8 am on Saturday.

This is the second visit of the prime minister to the shrine this season. He had visited it on May 3 when its gates had been reopened after the winter break.

Twenty aircraft of the Indian Air Force, including AN-32 transport, Mirage 2000 and Sukhoi 30 MKI, will make a touchdown on the Lucknow-Agra Expressway on October 24, an official said.

A traffic blockade will be put in place from October 20, to prepare the highway stretch for the event.

The IAF will be conducting the aircraft touchdown exercise on the Agra Expressway near Bangarmau in Unnao district, according to PRO, Defence (Central Command), Gargi Malik Sinha.

In all, 20 aircraft including AN-32 transport and fighter planes like Mirage 2000, Jaguar, Sukhoi 30 MKI will take part in the exercise, Sinha said.

The aircraft will land and then take-off from the expressway, she said.

"It is for the first time any transport aircraft will land and then take off. The AN-32 are meant for humanitarian assistance and disaster relief during floods or any other natural calamity. The aircraft can bring a large amount of

relief material. It can also help in evacuating people," Sinha said.

The landing and take-off exercise will be held on October 24, but a traffic blockade will be in place from October 20, as decided by state government authorities to prepare the stretch for the event, she said. -- PTI

Mumbai attack mastermind and banned Jamaat-ud-Dawah chief Hafiz Saeed's house arrest was today extended for another 30 days by a Judicial Review Board of Pakistan's Punjab province.

However, the board refused to allow the same in the detention of his four aides.

The 30-day detention will be applicable from October 24.

Saeed's aides -- Abdullah Ubaid, Malik Zafar Iqbal, Abdul Rehman Abid and Qazi Kashif Hussain -- may walk out free on the expiry of their September 25 detention order if they are not detained in any other case.

Saeed and his four accomplices were presented before the provincial judicial review board today amid high security in the Lahore high court.

A good number of his supporters were present at the court's premises who showered rose petals on him and his aides. Police, however, stopped them from chanting slogans in the favour of their leader.

The three member Punjab Judicial Review Board comprising Justice Yawar Ali (head), Justice Abdul Sami and Justice Alia Neelam held the hearing.

A court official told PTI after the hearing that the Home Department of Punjab government had sought three months extension to the detention of Saeed and others under public safety law.

"The judicial board after listening to the arguments of the government's law officer did not entertain his request and only granted 30-day extension to Saeed's house arrest in Lahore," he said. -- PTI

16:29

Some more pictures from PM Modi's visit to Gurez Sector in Jammu and Kashmir. Photograph: PIB

16:29 Soldiers generate new energy among Indians: Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi today spend Diwali with jawans posted along the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir's Gurez Sector and lauded them for their bravery and deidcation.

In the vistor's book at the Gurez valley, the PM wrote, ""Protecting the Motherland, far from your loved ones, displaying the highest traditions of sacrifice, all soldiers at the nation's borders, are symbols of bravery and dedication."

He further said, "I have an opportunity to spend the festival of Diwali with you. The presence of brave soldiers at the border, on this festive occasion, lights the lamp of hope, and generates new energy among crores of Indians."

"To accomplish the dream of 'New India', this is a golden opportunity for all of us to work together. The Army too is a part of it. Greetings to all of you on Diwali," he concluded.

PIX: PM celebrates Diwali with jawans in J&K

Islamic seminary Darul Uloom Deoband has issued a new fatwa (decree) that bans Muslims from posting pictures on social media sites.

Darul Iftaa, which issues edicts for the Darul Uloom Deoband, is reported to have announced that Muslims, men and women alike, should not post pictures of themselves or their family members on social media.

Earlier on October 9, the seminary had issued another fatwa banning Muslim women from plucking, trimming and shaping their eyebrows.

Darul Uloom Deoband, which is one of the largest Islamic seminaries in India, is based in Uttar Pradesh's Saharanpur district.

Justifying the move, Muslim cleric Mufti Mukkaram on Thursday said, "In Islam clicking picture with useless intention is totally illegal."

"If a picture is clicked to be used in Aadhaar Card, passport and other useful documentations it ok but for useless things such as to upload in social media it is not right", added Mukkaram.

Image: 'Dangal' girl Fatima Sana Shaikh recently trolled for her sari picture. Photograph: fatimasanashaikh.Instagram

Thursday's Doodle celebrates the 107th birth anniversary of Indian American astrophysicist Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar, who won the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1983 for his theory on the evolution of stars.

Born in Lahore, Pakistan in 1910, Chandra was a child prodigy. He published his first paper and developing his theory of star evolution before he even turned 20.

"Today's Doodle illustrates one of the most important of all of S. Chandrasekhar's contributions to our understanding of stars and their evolution: The Chandrasekhar limit," Google explained.

"A child prodigy, Chandra published his first paper and developed his theory of star evolution before turning 20. By age 34, he was elected to the Royal Society of London, and soon after, became a distinguished service professor of physics."

"The Indian-American physicist's honors are astronomical, including the National Medal of Science, the Draper Medal of the US National Academy of Science, and the gold medal of the Royal Astronomical Society. Though originally met with skepticism in the 1930s, Chandra's theories and equations won the Nobel Prize in Physics 50 years later," Google said. -- ANI

An anti-corruption court today indicted Pakistan's ousted prime minister Nawaz Sharif, his daughter and son-in-law over corruption references filed by the National Accountability Bureau.

The accountability court in Islamabad indicted 67-year- old Sharif, his daughter Maryam Nawaz and her husband retired Captain Mohammad Safdar in the London properties reference even though Sharif and lead defence counsel Khawaja Haris are both out of the country, Dawn reported.

All three accused pleaded not guilty to the charges.

During the proceedings, the court rejected an application filed by Capt Safdar's counsel Amjad Pervez seeking an adjournment of the indictment proceedings, the paper said.

The second lawyer from Sharif's legal team, Ayesha Hamid, filed an application seeking a delay in the indictment until the Supreme Court decides on a petition filed by Sharif against the filing of multiple corruption references against him by NAB.

The cases were registered weeks after the Supreme Court disqualified Sharif as prime minister on July 28 in the Panama Papers scandal.

Sharif's family has alleged that the cases are politically motivated.

13:21

The Border Security Force and the Pakistani Rangers exchange sweets at Attari-Wagah border on the occasion of Diwali.

12:41 Fire breaks out in central Kolkata office building

A fire broke out around 10.20 am on the 16th floor of a commercial building on Jawaharlal Nehru Road in central Kolkata.

The floor housed the server room of the State Bank of India's global market office.

The chief general manager (Kolkata circle) of SBI, P P Sengupta, said there was no news of anyone getting stuck on the floor.

Ten fire tenders have been pressed into service to douse the raging fire on the 17th floor of Jeevan Sudha building, a fire brigade official said.

Eyewitnesses said the fire was fast spreading to the other floors of the building.

The building, which has 19 floors, houses offices of SBI and LIC branches and other financial organizations. -- PTI

Photograph: ANI

At least 41 Afghan soldiers were killed in an attack targeting a military base in Kandahar, Afghan officials said.

Khalid Pashtun, a member of parliament from the province, provided the toll from the attack.

According to the Tolo News television channel citing sources, the attacks were perpetrated by two suicide attackers with Humvees vehicles.

The Taliban claimed the attack in a media statement.

Afghan forces have struggled to combat a resurgent Taliban since the US and NATO forces formally concluded their combat mission at the end of 2014.

Representative image

11:53

"#IndianArmy stands guard. #Happy #Deepawali to all of you," the army wishes the nation with this image.

11:30 PM reaches Gurez Sector to celebrate Diwali with jawans

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has reached the Gurez Sector in Jammu and Kashmir to celebrate Diwali with jawans.

Earlier, Modi greeted the nation through a Twitter post.

"Hearty wishes to the people of India on the auspicious occasion of Diwali", read the tweet.

Every Diwali the prime minister visits border posts to celebrate the festival of lights with jawans.

In 2014, he celebrated Diwali with security forces at Siachen while in 2015, the PM celebrated Diwali with jawans in Amritsar at Dogra war memorial.

In 2016, the prime minister celebrated Diwali with Indo-Tibetan Border Police jawans in Himachal Pradesh.

Image: PM Modi with Indo Tibetan Border Police personnel in Sumdo, Kinnaur district, Himachal Pradesh on October 30, 2016. Photograph: @narendramodi/Twitter

Some leaders lack "moral fabric" which is why they have to depend on "fancy tools" such as Facebook and Twitter to communicate with people, telecom entrepreneur Sam Pitroda has said.

He also said that information technology can help usher in the Gandhian concept of 'Ram Rajya' or the ideal state.

"(Mahatma) Gandhi's focus was on truth, trust, simplicity, inclusion. Unfortunately, I find today we have lost Gandhi in many ways from our day-to-day life," Pitroda said.

"Institutions are captured, and people today, to some extent in India and the US, are confused as to what our long-term vision is," he said yesterday at the 64th convocation ofGujarat Vidyapeeth, established by Mahatma Gandhi in 1920.

"People are more into vendetta. Personal attack, lies, false promises, and media have taken over the message," Pitroda said.

The 75-year-old telecom entrepreneur said a group of voluntary organisation representatives, whom he met yesterday, told him they are scared as they face attack for their work. Such a thing is not acceptable in India, said Pitroda.

He exhorted students to make efforts to realise Mahatma Gandhi's India with the use of technology that today connects 1.2 billion Indians through mobile phones.

"Are we using this connectivity to spread gossips, lies, or are we using this connectivity to propagate Gandhian ideas? We cannot blame others who misuse media. We have to blame us because we do not use media effectively," Pitroda said.

Openness, accessibility, connectivity, networking, democratisation, decentralisation, brought about by technology was a "great opportunity for social transformation", he said.

"And Gandhiji talked about all of these. I firmly believe Gandhiji's idea of Ram Rajya did not get translated into practice because we did not have IT then. Today we have the technology that was a missing link in Gandhiji's time," Pitroda said.

He said while Gandhi could galvanise millions using a "pinch of salt", "today's leaders need fancy tools because some of them lack moral fabric".

"We need to really give Gandhi to the globe and not just India. Gandhi is a heritage for humanity and not just a symbol for India. Knowledge can be democratised, people can be taught to revisit Gandhi and learn something new on him," Pitroda said.

He called for a change in election campaigning by using technology so as to root out corruption and reduce the need for huge amount of money.

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj has directed the Indian high commission in Islamabad to issue a visa to a Pakistani child for medical treatment in India.

The child's father, Kashif, had requested Swaraj on Twitter to grant medical visa for treatment of Abdullah, saying he needed post-liver transplant evaluation in India.

"The treatment of your child must not suffer for want of medicine. I have asked Indian high commission to issue medical visa. @ChachaKashif," the minister tweeted yesterday.

Kashif had said the child's medicines were about to finish and he needed immediate medical consultation in India.

In another tweet, Swaraj said a medical visa has also been approved for a Pakistani woman, who wants to undergo liver surgery in India.

The woman's son, Rafique Memon, had requested Swaraj to intervene and grant visa to his mother.

Swaraj also responded positively to a request by Nazir Ahmed that his eight-year-old child Mohammad Ahmed was awaiting medical visa for a year.

"We will issue visa to facilitate treatment of your 8-year-old child in India," she said.

Swaraj has been taking a sympathetic approach in granting medical visas to Pakistani nationals, notwithstanding the strain in ties between India and Pakistan over a host of issues, including cross-border terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir.

09:19 Fire breaks out in central Mumbai mall

A fire broke out in a clothes shop at Om Gopal Mall in the Dadar area of Mumbai late last night, at around 1.30 am.

Ten fire engines rushed to the site, and the fire was doused in three hours.

No casualties have been reported.

09:18 4.7 magnitude quake rattles J&K

An earthquake of magnitude 4.7 hit Jammu and Kashmir in the early hours of Thursday. The tremor occurred at around 6:40 am.

No loss of life, injury or damage to property has been reported so far.

Further details are awaited.

08:53 Suspect in Maryland double shooting arrested

A man suspected of killing three co-workers and critically wounding three other people in a two-state shooting spree in the US, has been taken into custody, the police said.

The Harford county sheriff's office on Twitter said that a man named Radee Labee Prince, 37, had been apprehended in Delaware by the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and other law enforcement agencies.

"Prince was apprehended a short time ago in Delaware by The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and allied law enforcement agencies," the Harford county sheriff's office tweeted.

The police said that the rampage began when Prince killed three co-workers and critically wounded two others at the Maryland kitchen countertop business where he worked.

A manhunt was launched for Prince and police warned he should be considered armed and dangerous.

The accused is believed to have shot five people at the kitchen countertop company in an Edgewood business park where he had worked for the past four months, the police said. The five victims were all employees of the business, Advanced Granite Solutions.

The police also said that the accused is also alleged to have shot another person in Delaware later.

The Congress Working Committee is scheduled to announce its election schedule on October 24. It is almost certain that Vice President Rahul Gandhi would soon head the party, reports Archis Mohan in Business Standard.

The All-India Congress Committee is likely to elect him the party chief in the first week of November.

On Wednesday, Rahul Gandhi attended a meeting of the parliamentary standing committee on external affairs. Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar briefed committee members on India-China relations and the Doklam stand-off. Rahul Gandhi asked questions on media reports that claimed that China has again started constructing a road in the Doklam area.

08:26 On Diwali, Delhi Metro will run till 10 pm

In view of Diwali, the last Delhi Metro train service today will begin at 10 pm from terminal stations of all lines of the network, the DMRC said.

"On account of Diwali festival the last metro train service on October 19 will start at 10:00 pm from terminal stations of all metro Lines, including the Airport Express Line," it said in a statement.

Meanwhile, the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation, in its endeavour to spread the message of cleanliness and to promote a clean and green environment, has also launched a specially decorated train.

Robbers struck a compartment of the Haridwar Express train and looted jewellery, cash and mobile phones from members of two families near Meerut in Uttar Pradesh, the police said.

The incident took place late on Tuesday night when five members of the two families were returning home after performing post-death rituals in Haridwar.

The families came to know of the loot in the morning at Kota railway station. Following the incident, the Government Railway Police, Kota, has lodged a zero number FIR against unidentified persons.

Sanjay Jaiswal, a resident of Vigyannagar area, along with his wife and son, and Rajesh Sain, a resident of the Mala Road area in Kota, and his brother robbed, SHO, GRP, Kota, Ganga Sahay said.

They were befriended by an unknown co-passenger who offered them juice and fruits, after consuming which they lost consciousness, when they were robbed, he added.

A gold wrist watch, two gold chains, three mobile phones and cash were stolen, he said.

The five were rushed to a hospital where they are undergoing treatment and their condition is stable, he added.

The Election Commission has decided that the number of voters per polling station should not exceed 1,400 as the paper roll attached to the papertrail machine cannot print more than 1,500 slips and attaching a new roll when polling is on is a cumbersome process.

In an order issued to its officials in all states, the commission has said that since the thermal paperroll used in the VVPAT (voter-verifiable paper audit trail) machines can print approximately 1,500 slips, it has been decided that the "maximum number of electors to be assigned to any polling station shall not exceed 1,400".

The poll panel explained that nearly 100 slips are printed during commissioning of the paper trail machines and during mock poll. Since a little over 1,400 slips can be printed per roll after that, the number of voters should not exceed 1400.

It believes the process of replacing the paper roll can be cumbersome when voting is on.

All polling stations in Himachal Pradesh assembly polls will have papertrail machines.

Himachal Pradesh will be the second state after Goa with 100 per cent VVPAT or papertrail coverage. The paper trail machines will be deployed along with EVMs in all the 7,521 polling stations, including 42 auxiliary polling stations at remote places.

VVPAT machines from one polling booth in each of the 68 assembly constituencies will be tallied with EVM results to check the vote count.

In case of a discrepancy in the results of the EVM and the paper trail machines, the outcome of the paper slip will prevail, a senior EC official later explained.

VVPAT will be used in all polling stations in all future Lok Sabha and assembly polls.

VVPAT machines dispense slips with the symbol of the party for which a person has voted. The slip drops in a box but the voter cannot take it home. -- PTI

Representative image

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