Bombay HC sends 2014 Maharashtra election EVMs for forensic tests

Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) from the booth number 185 at the Parvatti constituency in Pune during the 2014 Assembly elections will be sent for forensic analysis to check any sign of tempering, as per the instructions by the Bombay High Court on May 4 and 5.

The central Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) in Hyderabad will be answering the nine questions framed by the High Court. The laboratory will be assessing the EVM machines to check whether they are tempered. It will also be looking after if there exists any additional memory chip that can alter the election results.

The court gave order after Congress candidate Abhay Chhajed’s appeal. He lost to Madhuri Misal of BJP and challenged the same in October 2014. In May, 2017 he again moved the court to check if there was any kind of tampering.

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The justice hearing the case then ordered the EVMs of that particular constituency to be sent for inspection on or before May 15. The cost of the forensic tests will be beard by Chhajed himself.

The court expects some answers of the questions framed by it by June 20. The issue of tampering of EVMs came into limelight after the BJP’s massive victory in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand. Opposition parties are raising several questions and some are even demanding to return to traditional way of voting, i.e. ballot papers.

The Election Commission will be holding a meeting regarding the same on May 12 will the leaders of all major political parties.

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