I Will Never Trust EVMs: Akhilesh Yadav in Parliament
I Will Never Trust EVMs: Akhilesh Yadav in Parliament
Since EVM frauds are rampant, a dedicated microsite explains the risks of holding elections on EVMs in India.
By Rakesh Raman
The president of Samajwadi Party and member of parliament (MP) Akhilesh Yadav today (July 2) raised the issue of fraudulent use of electronic voting machines (EVMs) in Indian elections.
While speaking in the ongoing session of parliament, he said that he would never trust EVMs even if his party wins all the 80 Lok Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh (U.P.) where the party operates.
Although there are numerous complaints about the vulnerability of EVMs, no opposition political leader in India has the courage to speak against the use of these mysterious machines.
This is perhaps the first time that an opposition political leader (Akhilesh Yadav) has spoken forcefully against the use of EVMs in elections. He said in Hindi, “EVM pe mujhe kal bhi bharosa nahi tha, aaj bhi nahi bharosa, mein 80 ki 80 seats jeet jaun tab bhi nahi bharosa…The EVM issue has not died and will not die.” [ You can click here to watch the video. ]
It is alleged that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of prime minister (PM) Narendra Modi manipulates EVMs selectively to win certain state elections and Lok Sabha (parliamentary) elections.
While the BJP of PM Modi has also won the just concluded Lok Sabha election 2024, large-scale EVM frauds have been reported to help BJP candidates win elections.
The Wire news service reported on June 10 that in over 140 Lok Sabha seats during the 2024 election, more EVM votes were counted than EVM votes polled. It has given data for different parliamentary constituencies where discrepancies are visible.
[ Video: अखिलेश यादव ने संसद में उठाया अहम मुद्दा ]
Since the Election Commission of India (ECI) works without any accountability and the Supreme Court judges – who are clueless about EVM technology – are arbitrarily dismissing petitions against EVMs, there are no repercussions for this possible voting fraud in India. As a result, BJP and Modi will keep winning elections at will.
Meanwhile, Tesla and SpaceX chief Elon Musk – who also owns social media site X (formerly Twitter) – has warned of the risks of using EVMs in elections.
In his tweet of June 15, 2024, Musk said, “We should eliminate electronic voting machines. The risk of being hacked by humans or AI, while small, is still too high.”
It is believed that if voting is allowed on ballot papers instead of EVMs, neither Modi nor BJP can win any election.
Since EVM frauds are rampant, a dedicated microsite explains the risks of holding elections on EVMs in India. It covers legal, political, and technological issues related to EVMs.
By Rakesh Raman, who is a national award-winning journalist and social activist. He is the founder of the humanitarian organization RMN Foundation which is working in diverse areas to help the disadvantaged and distressed people in the society.
