The opposition camp in India has questioned the credibility of EVMs in almost every election held in the country since 2014.
New Delhi: After the declaration of Lok Sabha election results, the opposition camp did not move against EVMs in the same way as before. However, two weeks later, the reliability and security of EVMs came into question again. The ruling BJP, the opposition Congress, and the Samajwadi Party (SP) are embroiled in a controversy over a post on 'X' by Tesla CEO Elon Musk. Although Musk's post was in the context of America's presidential elections, it has become relevant to the recently concluded Lok Sabha elections in India.
"We should abandon EVMs," Musk wrote in a post on 'X' on Saturday. "Because it is more likely to be affected (hacked) by humans or artificial intelligence (AI)." His post referred to the controversy surrounding allegations of electoral fraud in Puerto Rico, North America. According to a report by the news agency AP, more than 100 EVMs were found to be rigged in Puerto Rico. Later, the irregularity was rectified by switching to ballot voting. Robert F. Kennedy Jr., an independent candidate for the American presidential election, also posted on "X" about this incident, promising transparent elections. Musk made his comment by sharing Kennedy's post.
The opposition camp in India has questioned the credibility of EVMs in almost every election held in the country since 2014. They claim that by hacking the EVMs, the results of the polls can be changed. However, the Election Commission of India has always rejected this allegation, supported by Narendra Modi's government and the ruling BJP. Before the recent Lok Sabha elections, there was a court case regarding the application to return to ballot papers instead of EVMs, but it did not succeed. In this situation, Musk, known worldwide for his innovative ideas in cutting-edge technology, has reinforced the allegations raised by the opposition in Indian politics. Consequently, some technocrats feel that the allegations against EVMs in Musk's comments are justified.
BJP leader and former Electronics and Information Technology Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar countered Musk's anti-EVM post. He wrote, "There is a simplistic notion that no one can build secure digital hardware. Wrong. Musk's statement may apply in the United States or elsewhere where Internet-controlled voting machines use common components." By sharing Musk's tweet, he claimed that EVMs cannot be hacked using Bluetooth, Internet, or WiFi. "Anything can be hacked," Musk commented under Chandrasekhar's tweet, seemingly challenging him.
On Saturday, it was revealed that Shiv Sena candidate Ravindra Walker won the Mumbai North West Lok Sabha seat by just 48 votes. During the vote counting, one of his relatives, Mangesh Pandilkar, was reportedly using a phone at the counting center. Police claimed that the EVM was connected to his phone, and Mangesh received an OTP during the vote counting. EVMs were being 'unlocked' with that OTP. The police are investigating how Mangesh's phone was linked to the EVM. Mumbai's Banrai police station is handling the case. As soon as this news broke, there was an uproar. Congress MP Rahul Gandhi posted a newspaper clipping of the news on 'X', writing, "EVM is India's black box. No one can test it. Some important questions have been raised about our electoral process."
Meanwhile, Akhilesh Yadav, the head of the SP, the second largest partner of the opposition alliance 'India', said, "We are once again making our old demand public. That means all future elections will be done through ballot papers."
New Delhi: After the declaration of Lok Sabha election results, the opposition camp did not move against EVMs in the same way as before. However, two weeks later, the reliability and security of EVMs came into question again. The ruling BJP, the opposition Congress, and the Samajwadi Party (SP) are embroiled in a controversy over a post on 'X' by Tesla CEO Elon Musk. Although Musk's post was in the context of America's presidential elections, it has become relevant to the recently concluded Lok Sabha elections in India.
"We should abandon EVMs," Musk wrote in a post on 'X' on Saturday. "Because it is more likely to be affected (hacked) by humans or artificial intelligence (AI)." His post referred to the controversy surrounding allegations of electoral fraud in Puerto Rico, North America. According to a report by the news agency AP, more than 100 EVMs were found to be rigged in Puerto Rico. Later, the irregularity was rectified by switching to ballot voting. Robert F. Kennedy Jr., an independent candidate for the American presidential election, also posted on "X" about this incident, promising transparent elections. Musk made his comment by sharing Kennedy's post.
The opposition camp in India has questioned the credibility of EVMs in almost every election held in the country since 2014. They claim that by hacking the EVMs, the results of the polls can be changed. However, the Election Commission of India has always rejected this allegation, supported by Narendra Modi's government and the ruling BJP. Before the recent Lok Sabha elections, there was a court case regarding the application to return to ballot papers instead of EVMs, but it did not succeed. In this situation, Musk, known worldwide for his innovative ideas in cutting-edge technology, has reinforced the allegations raised by the opposition in Indian politics. Consequently, some technocrats feel that the allegations against EVMs in Musk's comments are justified.
BJP leader and former Electronics and Information Technology Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar countered Musk's anti-EVM post. He wrote, "There is a simplistic notion that no one can build secure digital hardware. Wrong. Musk's statement may apply in the United States or elsewhere where Internet-controlled voting machines use common components." By sharing Musk's tweet, he claimed that EVMs cannot be hacked using Bluetooth, Internet, or WiFi. "Anything can be hacked," Musk commented under Chandrasekhar's tweet, seemingly challenging him.
On Saturday, it was revealed that Shiv Sena candidate Ravindra Walker won the Mumbai North West Lok Sabha seat by just 48 votes. During the vote counting, one of his relatives, Mangesh Pandilkar, was reportedly using a phone at the counting center. Police claimed that the EVM was connected to his phone, and Mangesh received an OTP during the vote counting. EVMs were being 'unlocked' with that OTP. The police are investigating how Mangesh's phone was linked to the EVM. Mumbai's Banrai police station is handling the case. As soon as this news broke, there was an uproar. Congress MP Rahul Gandhi posted a newspaper clipping of the news on 'X', writing, "EVM is India's black box. No one can test it. Some important questions have been raised about our electoral process."
Meanwhile, Akhilesh Yadav, the head of the SP, the second largest partner of the opposition alliance 'India', said, "We are once again making our old demand public. That means all future elections will be done through ballot papers."
إرسال تعليق