The Election Commission has updated the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) section on its website to address questions raised by the Congress party regarding irregularities in counting of votes in the recently concluded Haryana Assembly elections . In the updated FAQ, the EC aims to clarify concerns regarding the integrity of electronic voting machines (EVMs).

THE the electoral body rejected on Tuesday October 29 the allegations made by Congress regarding irregularities. In a letter to Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, the EC slammed the party for throwing “smoke of generic doubt” over the credibility of the election process without providing any substantial evidence.

The EC said: “This is the least expected of a national political party. » He stressed the importance of maintaining confidence in the electoral system and assured his commitment to addressing grievances in a timely manner.

EC criticizes Congress for lack of evidence

The EC noted that it had to remind the Congress party that there was “no evidence” of any compromise in the statutory election process. He reiterated that allegations of vote counting irregularities reflect congressional behavior that undermines public confidence in the election results.

“At the same time, the committee sincerely urges the INC to take firm and concrete steps, commensurate with the party’s long and illustrious reputation, to change its approach,” the letter said.

In response to Congress’s claims about EVM battery levels – suggesting discrepancies between the machines used in BJP and Congress victories – the EC assured that party representatives were present at every stage of polling and of the counting. He pointed out that detailed reports from returning officers of 26 constituencies revealed no irregularities and that Congress representatives participated throughout the election procedures.

Clarifications on EVM functionality and security

The updated FAQ section of the EC aims to clarify several technical aspects of EVMs in order to strengthen their integrity:

Safety measures against tampering: The EVM control unit is designed to prevent unauthorized access. In the event of tampering, this will deactivate the machine, ensuring that no manipulation will be possible. “The ECI-EVM design incorporates a “mutual authentication” process so that EVM units cannot connect or communicate with an external device,” the EC said.

“These are designed in such a way that they can detect an attempt to tamper with the unit, and upon detecting such an attempt, the EVM unit is set to a mode where it simply cannot be used in a survey. It must be sent to the factory to enable it to function as an EVM again.

“The display of the control unit cannot be manipulated in any way as it is housed in the Unauthorized Access Detection Module (UADM) of the EVM which disables the EVM, even if an attempt is made to open the UADM,” the EC said.

Battery specifications: The EVM power supplies use five alkaline batteries in series for the control unit and 30 alkaline batteries 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 operate in extreme temperatures, reliable performance, slow discharge rates and economical features .

Additionally, EVMs require power only during elections and consume very little power during operation. Unlike rechargeable batteries, which require regular charging and connectivity, alkaline batteries are used because EVMs are not designed with ports for external connections.

Performance monitoring: The EVM PSU is designed to support 4BU as well as 1CU with 2000 votes cast. The voltage drops very gradually when the capacity is high but drops quickly when the battery capacity drops below a threshold. In the case of lighter current load, such as with a single BU and less than 1000 votes cast, the battery current consumption is low and the output voltage cannot drop below 7.4 V and can thus display a capacity of 99%, the EC indicated.