CM Omar Abdullah defends EVMs, praises Central Vista project amid political tensions (WATCH)

Abdullah also said that EVMs are consistent and reliable, regardless of the election outcome. He referred to his own experiences, pointing out that he had faced electoral defeat but never blamed the machines.

Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Sunday (December 15) rejected the Congress party's recent objections to Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) and praised the Central Vista project in Delhi, stirring political discourse in the region.

Speaking to a news agency, Abdullah gave a sharp response to Congress's call for a return to paper ballots after its defeats in the Haryana and Maharashtra Assembly elections and said that political parties should maintain consistency regarding their stance on EVMs. He slammed the Congress for only questioning the reliability of EVMs when the election results were unfavorable to them.

"I have no problem with you making an issue out of EVMs so long as you do also when you win," Abdullah remarked. "The EVMs can't only be a problem when you lose the election because they are the same EVMs. When you get a hundred-plus members of Parliament using the same EVMs and you celebrate that as a victory for your party, you can't then a few months later turn around and say - we don't like these EVMs because now the election results aren't going the way we would like them to."

Abdullah also said that EVMs are consistent and reliable, regardless of the election outcome. He referred to his own experiences, pointing out that he had faced electoral defeat but never blamed the machines.

"One day voters choose you, the next day they don't," he said. "I lost the Lok Sabha elections, but when we won a majority in the September Assembly polls in Jammu and Kashmir, I never blamed the machines."

His remarks have further fueled the ongoing tensions between his party, the National Conference (NC), and the Congress. The NC had formed an alliance with Congress for the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly elections, where the NC secured 42 seats, while the Congress managed only six seats out of 90.

When asked if his views aligned with those of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Abdullah responded with a firm "God forbid!" He clarified, "No, it's just that what's right is right." Abdullah also took the opportunity to voice his support for the Central Vista project, which has been a subject of controversy in Delhi.

"Contrary to what everybody else believes, I think that what's happening with this Central Vista project in Delhi is a damn good thing," he said. "I believe constructing a new Parliament building was an excellent idea. The old one had outlived its utility."