Posted by New Delhi:The Kerela police took swift action against an online channel accused of disseminating fabricated news surrounding electronic voting machines (EVMs) and poll officials ahead of the impending state elections.
The case, filed at Thiruvananthapuram’s City Cyber Crime station, stemmed from a contentious report published by an online channel alleging glitches in EVMs housed in the capital district, leading to a standoff between election authorities and political figures.
Prompted by a complaint from the district collector, law enforcement swiftly intervened, culminating in the withdrawal of the misleading news by the online channel. Kerala’s police, in a resolute stance against misinformation and to uphold the sanctity of the electoral process, launched a 24-hour cyber patrol to combat cyber malfeasance in all its forms, news agency PTI reported.
Amid this digital maelstrom, Kerala’s Chief Electoral Officer addressed concerns raised by the Opposition regarding BJP’s purported advantage in mock polls in Kasaragod district. “What happened in Kasargod, the commission is being done by the Bharat Electronics limited, whose machines these are. They wanted to complete this process very fast. When they test the print test button, the first candidates name came, they stop the machine, thinking that it’s all fine,” the Kerala CEO said.
Asserting the integrity of the EVMs, the CEO dismissed the incident as a procedural error attributed to hastiness during the testing phase, emphasising the machine’s autonomy and security protocols. “EVM is a tested machine. There have been numerous petitions to the Supreme Court questioning the credibility of EVM. There has been an elaborate judgement as far as the security, safety of the EVM Machine is concerned. It is a standalone machine; it is not connected to anywhere else…,” he added.
The ensuing legal battle found resonance in the Supreme Court, with advocate Prashant Bhushan flagging discrepancies in a news report during a mock poll. Senior Deputy Election Commissioner Nitesh Kumar Vyas refuted the claims, assuring the court of a detailed report to debunk the alleged misinformation. “These news reports are false… We will submit a detailed report to the court.”