The poll body on Tuesday (October 29) dismissed allegations made by the Congress regarding the irregularities. In a letter to Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, the EC criticised the party for casting “the smoke of a generic doubt” over the credibility of the electoral process without providing any substantial evidence.
The EC stated, “This is least expected of a national political party.” It emphasised the importance of maintaining trust in the electoral system and assured its commitment to addressing grievances in a timely manner.
EC critiques Congress for lack of evidence
The EC noted that it had to remind the Congress party that there was “no evidence whatsoever” of any compromise in the statutory electoral process. It reiterated that the allegations of vote counting irregularities reflect a pattern of behaviour by Congress that undermines public confidence in electoral outcomes.
“At the same time, the commission sincerely urges INC to take firm and concrete steps, matching with the party’s long and illustrious standing, to amend their approach,” the letter stated.
In response to Congress’ claims about EVM battery levels — suggesting discrepancies between machines used in BJP and Congress victories — the EC assured that party representatives were present at every stage of polling and counting. It pointed out that detailed reports from returning officers of 26 constituencies found no irregularities, and that Congress representatives participated throughout the election procedures.
Clarifications on EVM functionality and safety
The EC’s updated FAQ section aims to clarify several technical aspects of EVMs to reinforce their integrity:
Manipulation safeguards: The control unit of EVMs is designed to prevent any unauthorised access. If tampered with, it will disable the machine, ensuring no manipulation is possible. “ECI-EVM design incorporates a “mutual authentication” process so that EVM units cannot connect or communicate with any external device,” the EC said.
“These are so designed that they can detect an attempt to tamper the unit, and on detection of such an attempt, the EVM unit is set in a mode where it simply cannot be used in a poll. It has to be sent to the factory for enabling it to function as an EVM again.”
“Display of the Control Unit cannot be manipulated in any way as it is housed in the Unauthorised Access Detect Module (UADM) of EVM which disables the EVM, if any attempt is made to even open the UADM,” the EC said.
Battery specifications: The power packs of EVMs utilise five alkaline cells in series for the control unit and 30 alkaline cells in a combination of series and parallel for the voter verified paper audit trail (VVPAT). These cells, known for their five-year shelf life, are ideal due to their single-use nature, ability to function in extreme temperatures, reliable performance, slow discharge rates, and economical characteristics.
Further, EVMs require power only during elections and consume very little energy during operation. Unlike rechargeable batteries, which necessitate regular charging and connectivity, alkaline cells are used because EVMs are not designed with any ports for external connections.
Performance monitoring: The EVM power pack is designed to support 4BUs along with 1CU with 2000 votes being cast. The voltage falls very gradually when the capacity is high but falls rapidly when the battery capacity reduces below a threshold. In case of lighter current load like with a single BU and less than 1000 votes being cast, the battery current drain is low and output voltage may not drop below 7.4V and can thus so display of 99% capacity, the EC said.