 "Govt rubbishes claims about EVM tampering")
The government on Thursday rubbished claims about EVM tampering even as it promised all support to the Election Commission's endeavour of maximising the use of voting machines with paper trail, but in a phased-manner.
Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad, while replying to a debate on Electoral Reforms in the Rajya Sabha, however, did not give a direct response to questions by the opposition with regard to Rs 3,000 crore sought by the EC for having poll machines with paper trail adequate enough for the entire country.
He slammed parties like the BSP, the SP and the Congress for raising questions over the EVMs against the backdrop of their defeat in the recent Uttar Pradesh polls.
"If you win, then the EVMs are fine, but if you lose, then the EVMs are tampered. Wow! This is a great logic," he said, taunting these parties while replying to a
While hitting out at the opposition parties, he cited their poll victories earlier and asked why such questions over EVMs were not raised then.
Members of the Congress, the SP, the BSP and the Left staged a walkout, expressing dissatisfaction over the minister's reply.
Prasad said these three parties had not been defeated by the EVMs but had been rejected by the people and they should accept this fact.
The EVMs are "completely safe", he asserted, adding, "I don't buy this logic that EVMs have not done a good job. It is doing a very good job."
While attacking the Congress, the BSP and the SP, he said, "The EC had called an all-party meeting in 2006 but they never raised this issue then."
Targeting the BSP whose chief Mayawati has been in the forefront of raising questions over the EVMs, he said, "Had they (BSP) convinced the people, they would have not lost elections so badly with 19 seats."
On the issue of EVMs with paper trail or Voter-Verified Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT), the minister said the EC and even the courts were of the view that machines should be used in a phased manner.
"Surely, in a phased manner the government will provide and will discuss," he said.
VVPATs have already been used on experimental basis in a number of polling booths, including during the recent elections.
Prasad said the EC will take a call on using these machines in the next round of assembly elections in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh, due later this year.
"The EC is the best judge on this issue... The government does not want to intervene. But if any assistance is required the government is available," the minister said.
He said logistical issues are involved in implementing VVPATs across the country in one go.
He said in 2015, 67,000 VVPATs had been ordered but till now only 33,000 have been received.
"In this light, logistics of procurement and availability are equally imporant... If those are not safe and sound, then they will say wrong machines have been put in place, in which our vote does not get registered. Therefore, the EC and even courts said it should be done in a phased manner," he said.
Due to safety and security reasons, initially two PSUs -- Bharat Electronic Ltd and Electronic Corporation India Ltd -- were involved in manufacturing these machines. Now, two more have been added, he said.
The Opposition members wanted to know why the government had not released funds to EC for these machines.
Leader of Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad said, "When the government does not give money, how can it be implemented in a phased manner?"
He added, "Since 2014 elections, you have stopped funds. How machines will be installed? If you cannot ensure security of machines, how can you ensure security of the nation? How can we believe you? .... They don't want to do. They want to win win elections by cheating."
Citing advantages of EVMs, the Law Minister said that use of these machines has reduced the incidents of booth capturing, which used to be widely prevalent earlier in all states.
Reponding to a member's query on why use EVMs in India when other countries are not using it, the Minister said India should not be "inferior" and all should have faith in the technology developed by scientists.
EVMs are used in France, Belgium, Mongolia, Bhutan and others, he added.
On paid news, the Law Minister said the government supports freedom of press and the EC has said there should be a debate on this issue.
On implementation of Majithia Wage Board recommendations for journalists as raised by some members, he said the issue is related to other ministry and "if there is a common view, I support you on this."
About holding simultaneous elections of the Lok Sabha and state assembly, Prasad said, "The idea came from a report of a standing committee, which said that because of the frequency of elections, development gets impacted.
"It is an idea which has relevance. But what is important is that it will surely lead to the need for changing the Constitution and consensus on the quality of the country. In that connection, they have also flagged it."
Stating that this is only an idea for debate, he said, "Some amendment to the Constitution is required to be done."
On proportional representation, he said there has been a debate for long time on this. "There are plus and minus points. But all the political forces in the country have been in power either in the centre earlier or now in states.
"Therefore, proportional representation has its own serious weaknesses because it may not reflect the true mandate of a state or the country. Therefore, presently we have no idea at all to push for it."
On state funding, he said it also has problems.
"One problem is something that I completely appreciate. The state funding is normally based on the premise that the funding is given upon the percentage of the votes you get. Now, we have cases in India one leader forming a party six months ago and coming to power. They will not be entitled to any state funding at all. Therefore, the diversity of Indian democracy is to be respected," he said.
On voting facilities to NRIs and migrant labours, the Minister said for this, infrastructure is required.
"As far as migrant labourers' part is concerned, that is also a debatable question. It will lead to impact. In a lighter vein, I want to say that if migrant labourers are allowed, my migrant labourers from Bihar will have profund impact on elections in many states. So, it is still a complicated issue from machines and managment point of view," it added.
