Election Commission issues BIG statement on Maharashtra elections, says, 'EVMs are...'

The Election Commission of India (ECI) has reaffirmed the credibility of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs), declaring them tamper-proof after a comprehensive checking and verification (C&V) exercise conducted in Maharashtra. The process was initiated following applications from 10 candidates who had contested the 2024 Maharashtra Legislative Assembly elections. According to the ECI press note issued on Thursday, the Chief Electoral Officer of Maharashtra carried out the C&V procedure across 10 Assembly constituencies.

The exercise involved 48 Ballot Units (BUs), 31 Control Units (CUs), and 31 Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trails (VVPATs). The verification confirmed that all machines were in proper working condition and no mismatches were found between the EVM results and VVPAT slips. "This exercise proves, yet again, that the EVMs are tamper-proof," the poll panel highlighted. The tests were conducted in the presence of eight of the 10 candidates, including eight applicants who were losing candidates and who had applied for the C&V along with other candidates who had contested or their representatives.

Diagnostic tests for verifying the burnt memory and microcontroller were carried out in constituencies including 147-Kopri-Pachpakhadi, 148-Thane, 211-Khadakwasala, and 229-Majalgaon. Authorised engineers from ECIL, the manufacturer of the machines, certified that all devices passed the tests successfully. In constituencies like 188-Panel, 192-Panel (Raigad district), 80-Arni (Yavatmal district), 119-Yevla (Nashik district), 271-Chandgad, and 276-Kolhapur North (both in Kolhapur district), diagnostic tests were followed by mock polls.

The results from the control units matched perfectly with the VVPAT slip counts, once again confirming the system's reliability. "After the diagnostic test, the authorised engineers from the manufacturer (ECIL) certified that all machines passed the diagnostic tests," the poll panel said. "Thereafter, a mock poll was conducted on the machines as per the request received from the candidates. The results of the EVM (from Control Unit) were verified with the VVPAT slips count, and no mismatch was found," it added.

(This story has not been edited by DNA staff and is published from news agency IANS).