Election Commission will retaliate today on Rahul Gandhi’s ‘vote theft’ allegations:

‘Mahamukabala’ of Indian democracy: Today is going to be an unprecedented and historic day in the arena of Indian politics, when the Election Commission of India, one of the largest constitutional institution of the country, will publicly respond to the serious allegations leveled by the Election Commission of India, a major opposition leader, Rahul Gandhi. This is not just a press conference, but a direct collision between the two most important pillars of democracy – an independent election authority and a strong opposition. This conflict has brought a political earthquake across the country and today everyone’s eyes will be on every word of the Election Commission.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi had recently made a very serious allegation like ‘vote theft’, questioning the credibility of the election process, especially the electronic voting machine (EVM). Now, to wash this stain on its credibility and fairness of Indian democracy, the Election Commission has announced a cross-border fight.

What are Rahul Gandhi’s allegations of ‘vote theft’?

The root of this entire controversy is the questions being raised by Rahul Gandhi and opposition parties, which are related to the transparency of the election process.

• Question on the reliability of EVM: The biggest charge of the opposition is about EVM’s alleged ‘tampering’. They argue that EVMs can be hacked or can be programmed in favor of a particular party.
• No complete matching of vvpat: The opposition is constantly demanding that the votes cast in each EVM should be 100% from the voter Verified Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) slips. Currently, the Election Commission matches only a few machines on a random basis. Rahul Gandhi alleges that not getting the complete matching can be a source of ‘vote theft’.
• Lack of transparency in the process: Rahul Gandhi has also questioned the functioning of the Election Commission, in which he alleges that the Commission does not show as much seriousness on the complaints of the opposition as it should be shown, and somewhere it is working under the pressure of the ruling party.

Election Commission’s ‘Mega Counter’: What will be the main point?

It is very rare that the Election Commission holds a press conference in this way to respond to the allegations of a political party. This step shows how seriously the Commission is taking these allegations. It is expected that in today’s press conference, the Election Commission will present its case on these main points:

1. EVM is ‘impervious’: The Commission will once again try to prove with data and technical performances that the Indian EVM is a stand-alone machine, which is not associated with a network (Internet or Wi-Fi), so it is impossible to hack it.
2. Safety Chakravyuh: The Commission will give a detailed details of the entire security protocol ranging from the formation of EVMs to the voting and then the counting of votes. In this, processes such as first level checking, randomization, mock poll and presence of representatives of political parties will be counted.
3. Transparency from vvpat: The Commission will tell that the system of VVPAT has been brought for transparency and no major disturbance has been found in the matching of its slips till date. They can describe 100% Milan as impractical and time taker.
4. Believer of the judiciary: The Election Commission can also cite all the court decisions in which many courts including the Supreme Court have approved the credibility of EVM.
5. Record of independent and fair election: The Commission will explain how it has successfully conducted independent and fair elections in India, which has changed power many times.

Why does this conflict matter?

This conflict is not between just one leader and an institution. Its results will be far -reaching for the future of Indian democracy.

• Voters trust: The voter is confident at the center of this entire dispute. If the citizens of the country lose their trust from the election process, then this will be the biggest threat to democracy.
• Credit of constitutional institution: Repeated questions on the fairness and freedom of the Election Commission weaken his credibility. Today, the Commission has both a big chance and challenge to re -establish its credibility.

Today’s press conference will decide whether the Election Commission is able to give satisfactory answers to the opposition’s questions or this conflict will become a even bigger political issue in the upcoming elections.