New Delhi: The Election Commission is all set to invite Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal anytime after May 12 to either select any of the Electronic Voting machines used in any of the polling booths in any of the states, which recently went for Assembly elections, or send any of his representatives for live demonstration on the functioning of the voting machine.

The EC is going to make it clear to the Opposition leaders who had raised questions over the functioning of the voting machines that if the EVMs were found functioning properly, they would be bound to tender a public apology as they had raised fingers over the functioning of the election watch dog. Mr Kejriwal and leaders of several Opposition parties, including the Congress, the BSP, the SP and Trinamool Congress, had raised questions over the functioning of the EVMs in the state elections. Mr Kejriwal had claimed that if any person presses any button, the vote would automatically go in favour of the BJP. He had also claimed that he could practically demonstrate how these machines could be tampered with.

Sources in the EC said that the Leaders of the Opposition parties would be invited separately to randomly select any EVM used in any booth in the Assembly polls. The Leaders of the Opposition parties could also send their representatives to see the live demonstration of the functioning of the voting machines.

Sources said that if the EVM is found in perfect shape, the leader of the particular party would be made to tender a public apology. “Since questions have been raised on our functioning, it is necessary to restore faith of people in the independent poll panel,” a senior EC official told this newspaper. “We just want to put an end to this unnecessary controversy.”