Returning Officer's 'undesirable move' rigged ballot papers at Calicut varsity polls, VC cancels it

Kozhikode: For the first time in the history of the Calicut University campus, elections to the Department Students' Union (DSU) have been cancelled -- after an official inquiry found that the Returning Officer, Dr Satheesh Palanki, Assistant Professor of History, had unlawfully altered ballot papers, compromising the integrity of the election process.

According to Vice-Chancellor Prof P Raveendran's inquiry proceedings, accessed by Onmanorama, Dr Palanki made an "undesirable intervention" by deleting the serial numbers from ballot papers, an action that directly violated the university's Syndicate-approved election rules. "We will serve him a show-cause notice because he will have to explain his illegal actions," said a top official of the university when contacted.

Calicut University campus saw widespread clashes between the SFI and the KSU-MSF combine in the afternoon of October 10, when the counting of votes was scheduled, and the Vice-Chancellor had to indefinitely shut the university to contain the violence.

KSU and MSF had objected to Dr Palanki's appointment as Returning Officer from the outset, alleging that he was partisan and favoured the Students' Federation of India (SFI), the students' wing of the ruling CPM.

Dr Palanki hails from Madikai panchayat in Kasaragod, a CPI(M) stronghold, and was previously associated with the SFI in colleges in Kerala and at Jawaharlal Nehru University, where he did his PhD.

In the same proceedings cancelling the campus election, the Vice-Chancellor ordered an inquiry by a five-member committee to examine the elections held at the university's three satellite centres -- the Dr John Matthai Centre for Economics in Thrissur, the Institute of Tribal Studies and Research (ITSR) in Wayanad, and Calicut University Institute of Engineering & Technology (CU-IET) near the main campus at Thenhipalam in Malappuram.

The proceedings, based on the University Press official's report, found that the returning officers at these three centres had also made "undesirable and unwarranted interventions" to have the serial numbers removed from the ballot papers. The inquiry committee will be headed by Prof Santhosh Nampy of the Department of Botany.

Question of integrity
As per the report submitted by the Assistant Registrar in charge of the Press Superintendent, the removal of the serial number from the ballot paper was specifically demanded by the four returning officers. The 'name of the voter' was also removed from the counterfoil, against the provisions contained in the specimen. Dr Palanki's letter requesting the same is also part of the proceedings. "This raises serious concerns with respect to the transparency and integrity in the conduct of elections," said the Vice-Chancellor in his proceedings.

Returning officers are bound by the rules framed by the Syndicate and are expected to act only in accordance with them, he said.

The Assistant Registrar's report also said that during elections in preceding years, ballots were printed with serial numbers, and this was the first time the Calicut University Press was asked to print ballot papers without serial numbers.

The absence of serial numbers on the ballot paper has serious consequences: if a vote is challenged or a fake vote is cast, it becomes impossible to trace or verify it, as the ballot and its counterfoil cannot be matched.

'Bogus ballots in SFI leader's bags'
When contacted, Calicut University Syndicate member Rasheed Ahamed, a UDF nominee and complainant, alleged that this year's campus election was "rigged from the start". The Returning Officer, he described as a "pucca SFI leader," was nominated by the outgoing Students' Union president, Dr Shahana V A, Assistant Professor in the Department of Malayalam. She was also an SFI leader during her student days, he said.

According to Rasheed, the Returning Officer then appointed teachers aligned with the Left as presiding and counting centre managers. The Vice-Chancellor had named five observers -- two from the Left, two from the Congress, and one neutral teacher. "On counting day, the neutral observer failed to turn up, and the two Congress-affiliated teachers backed out after being threatened by SFI members that they would not be allowed inside the counting centre. As a result, only the two Left observers were present," he said.

About 10 minutes before counting began, a clash broke out between UDSF and SFI supporters outside the hall, delaying the entry of UDSF candidates. "By the time they reached, the ballot boxes had been opened and the ballots were already on the counting tables," Rasheed alleged.

During the counting, UDSF leaders claimed to have found bogus ballots in the bags of SFI supporters, sparking another round of verbal and physical confrontations that left several students injured.

The SFI, in turn, alleged that MSF leader P K Mubashir swallowed a ballot paper and that KSU activists tore others to disrupt counting when the SFI was leading by over 300 votes. Rasheed dismissed the allegation as an attempt to divert attention from their wrongdoings.

SFI usually dominates the department students' union elections on the Calicut University campus. "But with the introduction of new courses and an influx of undergraduates, the political character of the campus may have changed," said Rasheed, hinting at the alleged manoeuvres of the left-leaning Returning Officer and other faculty.

Serial numbers deleted to protect the secrecy of the election
When contacted, Returning Officer Dr Satheesh Palanki, Assistant Professor of History, said he had requested the removal of serial numbers to ensure ballot secrecy.

However, in his report -- accessed by Onmanorama -- he did not explain the decision to delete serial numbers, and focused instead on the ruckus and violence allegedly created by UDSF leaders during counting.

During the counting, his report said, UDSF representatives had demanded that ballots lacking the presiding officers' signatures be set aside. By the time around 1,400 votes were counted for the chairman's post, 23 such ballots had been set aside. "Around 6 pm, without any provocation, Salahuddin Kottuwala, Muhammed Yasin, Mubashir P K, and Asadaf T P ran around the hall shouting that the voting was sabotaged by the RO and his team, claiming everything was fake, and created an atmosphere of terror," he wrote.

Dr Palanki alleged that Salahuddin Kottuwala grabbed his bag and ran, shouting that it contained a ballot paper, while Asadaf climbed onto a counting table, grabbed a bunch of ballots, and tore them apart. Clashes then broke out.

He said that around 30 teachers were assaulted, abused, and threatened. Of the 2,367 votes polled, 2,324 were counted and secured in the ballot boxes, while 19 ballot papers were destroyed and 21 were damaged. He claimed to have pieced together the damaged ballots to complete the count around 8 pm, when UDSF students allegedly began pelting the counting centre with stones. "This is the first time in our professional lives that we have experienced such attacks," Dr Palanki wrote, urging the university to take exemplary action against those involved in the violence.

VC dismisses RO complaint
In his proceedings, the Vice-Chancellor dismissed Returning Officer Dr Satheesh Palanki's six-page report, stating that he had violated election rules and that his complaint, therefore, could not be considered.

"Even without a conclusive finding on the allegations of fake ballots or attempts to bring them into the counting hall, it must be held that conducting the polls using ballot papers without serial numbers is unacceptable, as it violates the provisions mandated by the election rules," noted Vice-Chancellor Prof Raveendran.

"In the present scenario, the lapse lies with the Returning Officer," he said, adding that considering his complaint would not be justified.

The university's top official, quoted earlier, further indicated that Dr Palanki is likely to face disciplinary action if his response to the forthcoming show-cause notice is found unsatisfactory.

The Vice-Chancellor also ordered that the DSU elections be held afresh, using ballot papers printed strictly in accordance with the byelaws.