Election Commission seeks FIR in EVM hack claim case
New Delhi, Jan 22 (IBNS): The Election Commission of India on Tuesday sought to file an FIR in the case of an Indian "cyber expert" named Syed Shuja claiming that the electronic voting machines (EVMs) used in India could be tampered with, said media reports.
Shuja had even claimed - at a news conference held in London on Monday where he spoke through Skype from an undisclosed location in the US - that the BJP had rigged the 2014 elections to secure the huge win.
BSP chief Mayawati on Tuesday demanded that EVMs be immediately banned and ballot papers be reintroduced in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls.
In a statement released on Tuesday as quoted by News18, Mayawati said: “The mystery of EVM is now more serious after a London-based cyber expert claimed that EVMs were hacked in 2014 Lok Sabha polls. In the interest of the country, EVMs should be immediately banned. The tactic of ‘Vote Hamara, Raj Tumhara’ won’t work anymore and this issue should be resolved immediately.”
EVMs should be immediately banned: BSP chief Mayawati demands before Lok Sabha polls“For free and fair elections, ballot papers should be brought back as they can be verified unlike the EVM votes. Taking into consideration the recent hacking controversy, the upcoming elections should be conducted using ballot papers instead of EVMs,” the BSP chief said.
BJP questions presence of Congress leader Kapil Sibal in London's EVM hackathon
EC denies allegations:
The Election Commission of India had denied Shuja's allegations that the electronic voting machines (EVMs) used in Indian elections could be tampered with.
"The ECI firmly stands by the empirical facts about foolproof nature of ECI EVMs deployed in elections in India," the commission said.
"It needs to be reiterated that these EVMs are manufactured in Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) and Electronics Corporation of India Limited (ECIL) under very strict supervisory and security conditions and there are rigorous Standard Operating Procedures meticulously observed at all stages under the supervision of a Committee of eminent technical experts constituted way back in 2010," it added.
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