EVM is not connected to anyone...Election Commission rejects allegation of hacking

Electronic Voting Machine: Election Commission has completely rejected the allegations of EVM hacking in Maharashtra. There are allegations in Maharashtra that EVMs were connected to mobile phones. Election Commission's Returning Officer in Maharashtra Vandana Suryavanshi said in a press conference on Sunday that some people have tweeted about the news that came today. But these allegations are completely wrong. She clearly said that no OTP is required to unlock EVM. EVM device is not connected to anything. EVM is a standalone system. The news is completely wrong. We have issued a notice to the paper. A defamation case has been registered under section 499 of IPC.

Vandana Suryavanshi said that I tried to explain to the reporter of the paper, but despite this, wrong news was published. Now a notice will be sent against him under section 505 and 499 of IPC. Dinesh Gurav, who was allowed to keep a mobile, it was his own mobile.

Hacking EVM is not possible: Election Commission

She said that we had allowed some people to keep mobile phones to upload data, but how did that mobile reach the person concerned. We have also filed an FIR on that. She clearly said that we will not give CCTV to anyone (even the police), unless someone brings a court order.

Vandana Suryavanshi said that EVM cannot be hacked at all. There is no question of hacking. This is not a fact. We have complained that the mobile has been used by an unauthorized person. Only a password is available for login in EVM. It has nothing to do with EVM.

Earlier, Mumbai Police has registered a case against Mangesh Pandilkar, brother-in-law of newly elected Mumbai North West Lok Sabha MP Ravindra Waikar, for allegedly using a mobile phone at the counting center.

Controversy over connecting EVM to mobile

Police sources allege that Pandilkar used the phone to generate one-time password (OTP) to unlock the electronic voting machine at the centre located in Goregaon area of ​​Mumbai, Maharashtra. Waikar, a member of the Shiv Sena faction led by Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, defeated Amol Gajanan Kirtikar of the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena by just 48 votes, triggering a controversy.

After the results were announced, the police and the Election Commission received complaints from several candidates contesting from the seat. An Election Commission employee was also accused of allegedly providing a mobile phone to Pandilkar. Election officer Dinesh Gurav allegedly had the crucial phone for generating OTP to unlock EVMs, which was meant only for election officials.

Investigation begins on Election Commission complaint

The police investigation is probing the role of the phone in OTP generation and its use for data handling and calls. Pandilkar has reportedly admitted to using the phone from morning till 4:30 pm on the crucial day.

Three teams of the Mumbai police are investigating the case, which will review the CCTV footage provided by the Election Commission. The controversy gained momentum after Elon Musk expressed apprehensions about EVMs, advocating the elimination of EVMs due to their alleged hacking vulnerabilities.