VVPAT Slips Dumped on Roadside in Samastipur — Assistant Returning Officer Suspended
In a significant electoral lapse in Bihar’s Samastipur district, a large number of VVPAT slips were discovered scattered by the roadside in the Sarairanjan assembly segment.
The poll panel, the Election Commission of India (EC), confirmed that though the slips emerged from a mock poll conducted before actual voting, the incident was treated with utmost seriousness.
According to the statement released by the EC, the District Magistrate of Samastipur was directed to personally visit the site, take possession of the slips, and launch an inquiry.
Meanwhile, the Assistant Returning Officer (ARO) responsible for the polling station has been suspended for negligence, and an FIR is being registered against him.
The occurrence came to light after a viral video on social media showed numerous slips lying near a college in Sarairanjan.
The EC clarified that because the slips were from the mock polling process, the integrity of the actual polling remains uncompromised.
The Sarairanjan seat has been held since 2010 by Vijay Kumar Chaudhary of the Janata Dal (United), and in the current contest faces challengers including Arbind Kumar Sahani of the Rashtriya Janata Dal and Sajan Kumar Mishra of the Jan Suraaj Party.
The first phase of polling — covering 121 constituencies — occurred on 6 November; the second and final phase covering the remaining 122 seats is scheduled for 11 November, with vote-counting set for 14 November.
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