EVM tampering

EVER since TN Seshan took over the reins of the Election Commission about three decades ago and brought the polling process on track, the institution’s conduct of elections has rarely been questioned. Doubts raised by a sour loser rarely gained traction among the general public and political parties and the objections died a natural death as the country moved on. Since 2011 doubts have arisen over the vulnerability of electronics voting machines (EVMs), eloquently expressed at that time by BJP backroom strategists such as Subramanian Swamy and GVL Narasimha Rao. But they swallowed their objections after the BJP’s stunning victory in 2014.

It is incomprehensible why the EC did not quickly follow up on the suggestions given by the Supreme Court and high courts in 2013 to incorporate the Voter Verified Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) in all EVMs. Four years later, after aspersions on EVMs were cast by AAP and other parties, the EC has obtained Union Cabinet sanction for 16 lakh VVPATs. If it was a matter of Rs 3,200 crore versus the credibility of the election process, the choice was not hard to make. As a result, those at the receiving end of the election results, especially in UP, Goa, and even Punjab, will continue to doubt the integrity of the EC and its EVMs.

The tremendous leaps in technology may have left the superannuated bureaucrats who make up the EC stumped for answers. At Friday’s marathon meeting with political parties, that took place after considerable cajoling, calumny and protests, the EC fell back on its assurance that EVMs were hack-proof. It also assured the parties that VVPATs will nullify the possibility of tampering. By failing to be proactive in the matter when the courts made the suggestion, the EC has diminished itself and given wind to the sails of cynics who have called into question the results of the UP, Punjab and Goa elections. This damage to the credibility of the poll process cannot be undone by any number of assurances. The trust deficit, even if among a minority, is here to stay.