Election Commission challenges political parties, experts to hack, tamper their EVMs

The Election Commission on Wednesday dared political parties and experts through "open challenge" by inviting them to hack their EVMs and show they can be tampered with.

While the Commission is yet to decide on the exact date, it said the challenge would be held in the first week of Mayand could continue for ten days.

The last time such an event had taken place was in 2009 when 100 machines from different parts of the country were kept at Vigyan Bhawan.

No one, EC claimed, could hack the electronic voting machines. When Delhi Chief Minister and AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal had met Chief Election Commissioner Nasim Zaidi with a complaint on EVMs last week, he was told that the poll panel is planning such an event.

This time, the venue could be Nirvachan Sadan, the ECheadquarters. The specifics would be decided by the Commission's technical expert committee on EVMs and the details would be made public in the next couple of days. 

Also Read: Lost trust in EVMs, ballot paper system must be restored, Opposition parties tell Election Commission 

There is a strong possibility that EVMs used in the UttarPradesh polls could also be brought in for the challenge. BSPhad alleged that tampered machines helped BJP win the polls. As per rules, the machines cannot be taken out of the strong room for 40 days -- a period within which an aggrieved person can file an election petition before the high court concerned.

That period will end later this month. "From first week of May, experts, scientists, technocrats can come for a week or 10 days and try to hack the machines," an official source said. They said the challenge will be open for a week or 10days. 

Also Read: BSP, Congress target Centre over EVM tampering issue in Rajya Sabha