“ECI firmly stands by the empirical facts about foolproof nature of the ECI EVMs deployed in elections in India,” Election Commission of India says in a statement
EC has always maintained that it is impossible to tamper with the EVMs. (File Photo: IANS)
The Election Commission of India on Monday strongly denied any possibility of EVM tampering, and said it was examining legal action against those trying to engage EC into “this motivated slugfest”. The EC was reacting to claims made by a London hacker that EVMs used in India could be tampered with.
At an event in London on Monday, the self-proclaimed hacker allegedly demonstrated EVMs used by the ECI and claimed that it was possible to tweak the machines.
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The ECI however rubbished the claims. “ECI firmly stands by the empirical facts about foolproof nature of the ECI EVMs deployed in elections in India,” a senior EC official said in New Delhi on Monday evening.
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“Whereas, ECI has been wary of becoming a party to this motivated slugfest, ECI maintains that its EVMs are foolproof,” he added.
The commission further said that these EVMs were manufactured at the Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) and the Electronics Corporation of India Limited (ECIL) under very strict supervisory and security conditions.
There were rigorous Standard Operating Procedures meticulously observed at all stages under the supervision of a Committee of eminent technical experts constituted way back in 2010, the commission said.
Earlier in the day, a US-based man during a so-called hackathon made a sensational and controversial, though unsubstantiated, claim that EVMs used in Indian elections could be tampered with, and that the 2014 Lok Sabha elections were rigged. The man addressed a press conference in London where he claimed that many political parties in India were aware about how EVMs could be hacked.
The Election Commission dismissed the claims made by the London hacker and said it was examining as to what legal action could and should be taken in the matter.
The hacker’s allegations came amid a campaign started by opposition parties ahead of the Lok Sabha Elections 2019 to discard EVMs and return to ballots.
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