Play

Arvind Kejriwal’s press conference alleging rigging of votes through EVM (electronic voting machine) tampering was dramatic, but wrong.

As this report shows, the Delhi Chief Minister’s accusation that the EVM code was hacked and its programming altered to direct all votes to the BJP, no matter which button is pressed, is wrong. (Kejriwal even claimed to know this as he is an IIT graduate.)

The Aam Aadmi Party leader actually suggested the Election Commission was party to EVM tampering in both Bhind (Madhya Pradesh) and Dholpur (Rajasthan).He went on to claim that in Bhind, the EVM error was exposed in the presence of several senior journalists from MP.

According to Kejriwal, three buttons were pressed, corresponding to the BSP, the Congress and the BJP, but the VVPAT (voter-verified paper audit trail) spewed out three slips with the BJP symbol. Even so, argued Kejriwal, the EC cleared the EVM.

Unfortunately for Kejriwal, he chose to amplify the misreported story that appeared in one newspaper, and demanded that the EVMs used in the Dholpur bypoll not be used for the coming MCD (Municipal Corporation of Delhi) elections.

This Scroll.in report explains all the misconceptions. Accusations made on the basis of the EVM examined in Bhind, at any rate, do not stand scrutiny.