Poll official junks EVM hacking charge in North West Mumbai
A senior poll official on Sunday rejected allegations of Electronic Voting Machine hacking in the Mumbai North West Lok Sabha seat, stating that the EVM is a foolproof standalone device with no provision for communication.
Returning Officer Vandana Suryavanshi, in a press conference in Mumbai, clarified that voting machines do not require an OTP to function.
Her clarification came in response to the police case against a relative of a Shiv Sena (Ekhnath Shinde) MP Ravindra Waikar for allegedly using a mobile phone within a counting centre. It was claimed that the phone was used to unlock the EVM. Opposition leaders, citing the report, alleged EVM hacking.
“It is a technically foolproof standalone device. There is no provision for wireless or wired communication with it,” Suryavanshi explained, rejecting claims of using a mobile phone to unlock the device.
She further stated, “For EVMs, there is no need for an OTP. The results are generated by pressing a button,” and accused the news of being fake and unverified.
“This is a complete lie being spread by a newspaper, which some leaders are using to create a false narrative,” Suryavanshi asserted.