Even as the third phase of polling for the Lok Sabha election draws to a close, some on social media have been casting aspersions on the Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs), the device used to electronically record and count votes cast in elections.
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One such post alleges irregularities at a polling booth in Assam. “There were only 90 voters at a booth in Dima Hasao district of Assam, but 171 votes were cast in EVM, 5 officers of Election Commission suspended,” it claims.
However, The Hindu found that the incident had nothing to do with the ongoing election. A keyword search revealed that the incident occurred during the 2021 Assembly election in Assam, as a group of villagers refused to accept the official voters’ list, and cast votes as per their own list of electors.
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A repoll was ordered and five officials were suspended over the incident.
Did a poll officer demonstrate the EVM’s vulnerabilities in Gujarat?
Another post claims to show the Chief Electoral Officer of Gujarat demonstrating vulnerabilities in EVMs.
The very premise of a Chief Electoral Officer casting aspersions on EVMs was dubious. The person featured in the video was a man, but a simple search on an official website revealed that P. Bharathi, a woman, is the State’s Chief Electoral Officer.
Further, we noticed that the banner behind the person giving the demonstration had the words “EVM Hatao Morcha”, a reference to a group that campaigns against EVMs. The person giving the demonstration was a member of the group. We found similar videos online featuring the same person under the banner of this organisation.
The Election Commission of India has maintained that EVMs cannot be tampered with. It may be noted that the Supreme Court recently upheld the integrity of EVMs.