Arvind Kejriwal questions ‘credibility’ of Election Commission’s open challenge to prove EVM tampering

Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal wrote to state election commission to not use Generation 1 EVMs used in Rajasthan

By: Rakesh Jha |
April 13, 2017 10:28 am

In the wake of reports that election commission has thrown open challenge to prove EVM tampering, Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party convenor Arvind Kejriwal has questioned its veracity and said that if that were true,poll panel would have released an official statement.

Speaking to reporters, Kejriwal questioned, “Why are these stories ascribed to ‘sources’? Why the poll panel hadn’t released an official statement on the challenge?”

Kejriwal was responding to reports that EC has decided to to throw an open challenge to prove that EVMs cannot be tampered with. The excercise could apparently be taken up in the first week of May.

Earlier on Wednesday Delhi CM wrote to the State Election Commission and requested the poll panel to not use the Generation 1 EVMs used in Rajasthan for the upcoming MCD polls in the capital.

Kejriwal also questioned the SEC’s decision to procure the “obsolete and discarded” machines. In the letter, Kejriwal demanded that MCD elections should be conducted using only VVPAT machines and Generation 1 machines should be immediately withdrawn, reports Indian Express.

However Election Commissioner OP Rawat has dubbed the media reports as pure guesswork. “Thirteen parties came and requested an all-party meeting and the EC has agreed. So people are taking bits and pieces of information from that. The commission wants all stakeholders to have belief in the system.… Whatever is coming in the media, is just guesswork,” he told CNN News 18.

He also said that EC is preparing to prove truth but nothing has materialised yet . “Till the election petition period expires on April 26, the EC cannot touch the EVM, so we can’t say anything about May 1 or whatever date is being spoken about,” he added.