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  • Evms and The Controversy Surrounding It

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    Anany Upadhyay
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    Kamal Nath, a senior Congress leader, has moved the Supreme Court seeking random verification of VVPAT machines in the upcoming Madhya Pradesh state elections. He alleges that there are over 60 lakh duplicate, invalid, or false voter entries in the electoral rolls. While EVMs are seen by some as vulnerable to rigging, introducing VVPAT was meant to increase transparency but opposition parties still question the machines' integrity and want more oversight of the process. The debate around EVM security continues as allegations of manipulation have arisen in previous elections and political parties remain unsatisfied with the level of scrutiny and proof provided.

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    Evms and the Controversy Surrounding It

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    Kamal Nath, a senior Congress leader, has moved the Supreme Court seeking random verification of VVPAT machines in the upcoming Madhya Pradesh state elections. He alleges that there are over 60 lakh duplicate, invalid, or false voter entries in the electoral rolls. While EVMs are seen by some as vulnerable to rigging, introducing VVPAT was meant to increase transparency but opposition parties still question the machines' integrity and want more oversight of the process. The debate around EVM security continues as allegations of manipulation have arisen in previous elections and political parties remain unsatisfied with the level of scrutiny and proof provided.

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    28 views1 page

    Evms and The Controversy Surrounding It

    Uploaded by

    Anany Upadhyay
    Kamal Nath, a senior Congress leader, has moved the Supreme Court seeking random verification of VVPAT machines in the upcoming Madhya Pradesh state elections. He alleges that there are over 60 lakh duplicate, invalid, or false voter entries in the electoral rolls. While EVMs are seen by some as vulnerable to rigging, introducing VVPAT was meant to increase transparency but opposition parties still question the machines' integrity and want more oversight of the process. The debate around EVM security continues as allegations of manipulation have arisen in previous elections and political parties remain unsatisfied with the level of scrutiny and proof provided.

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    © All Rights Reserved
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    EVMs AND THE CONTROVERSY SURROUNDING IT: THE SAGA

    CONTINUES…
    By Anany Upadhyay
    The debate around allegations of some Opposition parties that electronic voting machines
    (EVMs) can be rigged continues. Just recently Senior Congress leader Kamal Nath on Friday
    moved the Supreme Court seeking random verification of Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail
    (VVPAT) machines in the ensuing Assembly polls in Madhya Pradesh. In his plaint the senior
    congress leader along with the other senior leaders of the congress party from the state submitted
    a draft to the Election Commission of India (ECI) stating 60 lakh duplicate, repeat, multiple,
    illegal, invalid, false etc. entries/voters in the electoral rolls of Madhya Pradesh for Assembly
    Elections, 2018.
    He further highlighted that the ECI dropped more than 24 lakh genuine voters from the list
    published in January 2018. Mr. Nath then makes reference to a judgment rendered by the
    Supreme Court in 2013, wherein it had directed usage of VVPAT machines for all forthcoming
    elections in a phased manner, and demands an overhaul of the operation of the machines. Further
    he suggested to increase the visibility time of VVPAT paper trail from 7 seconds to 15 seconds,
    making sure the paper trails are sealed in a box and preserved for at least 120 days, immediate
    recounting of votes if a candidate is not satisfied, and using high-quality thermal printers and
    thermal papers at polling booths. He has also sought a direction to the ECI to not post in key
    positions, any such officials who are facing any disciplinary proceeding or inquiry.

    This isn’t the first time that the Election Commission has come under fire from the opposition.
    The opposition has been alleging a possible collusion between the ruling party and the Election
    Commission of India as a result of which EVMs have come under line of fire. There have been
    allegations of EVM rigging in UP elections. Election Commission in order to come out clean
    introduced VVPAT in the Gujarat state elections. In the month of June in 2017, Election
    Commission introduced EVM Hackathon to come out clean for once and for all. It was an open
    competition for all the political parties and this challenge was open for 5 days. However only
    two political parties participated namely NCP and CPI(M).
    While the usage of EVMs are now looked from a political angle, it is also pertinent to note here
    that the panchayat level elections conducted in West Bengal earlier this year has also stirred up
    the controversy as to whether return to the old days of conducting election or not. Elections were
    conducted via Ballot papers this time around which resulted into allegedly multiple riggings.
    Whether to go with the traditional means or with modern EVMs is still a question to be
    discussed, the solution to it appears to be solved no time sooner.

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