MP Ravindra Waikar's brother-in-law booked on allegations of EVM tampering during Lok Sabha counting
Mumbai: Mangesh Pandilkar, brother-in-law of Mumbai North West Lok Sabha MP Ravindra Waikar, has been accused of violating electoral norms by allegedly using a mobile phone inside a counting center during the announcement of the 2024 Lok Sabha Election results. The incident reportedly took place on June 4 at a center in Goregaon, a part of Waikar's constituency.
According to reports, polling personnel raised concerns after observing Pandilkar using a mobile phone, which was allegedly connected to an EVM. An independent candidate alerted the returning officer about the incident leading to action from the Vanrai police. Pandilkar has been booked under IPC section 188 for disobedience of official orders.
Ravindra Waikar, a Shiv Sena candidate, won the Mumbai North West Lok Sabha seat by 48 votes.
A report emerged on Sunday, claiming that Mangesh Pandilkar was using the phone, which was connected to the Electronic Voting Machine (EVM). Mid-day cited police as saying that this mobile phone was used for generating the OTP that unlocked the EVM machine
The allegations have triggered a political outcry, with opposition leaders, including Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, expressing apprehensions about the transparency and integrity of the electoral process. Gandhi criticized what he described as the lack of accountability in the handling of EVMs, labeling them as "black boxes" that require greater scrutiny.
Meanwhile, Shiv Sena(UBT)’s Aaditya Thackeray accused the Election Commission of withholding CCTV footage from the counting center, alleging compromised transparency. This has further fueled debates over the security and reliability of EVMs used in Indian elections.
Once a traitor, always a traitor!
— Aaditya Thackeray (@AUThackeray) June 16, 2024
The case of the mindhe gang candidate from North West Mumbai gets murkier, as the gaddar candidate indulges in treachery with democracy now.
Surprisingly, or not, the Entirely Compromised- election commission, has refused to share CCTV footage… pic.twitter.com/hT27Bb2qDQ
Another Shiv Sena UBT leader, Priyanka Chaturvedi, said, “It is the right of the candidate to seek CCTV footage of the counting day, yet it has been denied by the Mumbai Suburban District Collector to Amol Kirtikar ji who EC claims has lost by 48 votes.”
This is all a part of Vanrai Police Station investigation.
— Priyanka Chaturvedi🇮🇳 (@priyankac19) June 16, 2024
Not to forget:
- There was pressure on Police not to file FIR which was demanded by not just @AmolGKirtikar ji but also two independent candidates
- it is the right of the candidate to seek cctv footage of the counting… pic.twitter.com/BQpIQTNzL4
Responding to criticisms, former Union Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar defended the robustness of Indian EVMs, emphasizing their design as secure and isolated systems that are immune to external manipulation.
This is a huge sweeping generalization statement that implies no one can build secure digital hardware. Wrong. @elonmusk 's view may apply to US n other places - where they use regular compute platforms to build Internet connected Voting machines.
— Rajeev Chandrasekhar 🇮🇳 (@RajeevRC_X) June 16, 2024
But Indian EVMs are custom… https://t.co/GiaCqU1n7O
Chandrasekhar was reacting to Tesla CEO Elon Musk's comment on the use of EVMs during election process. Musk had on Saturday sought the elimination of EVMs from the elections.
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TMC will be voted back to power in Bengal: Tejashwi Yadav
Patna (PTI): Leader of Opposition in Bihar assembly, Tejashwi Yadav, on Tuesday exuded confidence that the Mamata Banerjee-led TMC will again be voted to power in West Bengal.
Yadav returned to Patna after a four-day poll campaign in West Bengal.
“The atmosphere there is euphoric and people want to bring Didi (Mamata Banerjee) back to power. I am fully confident that the TMC will win the election,” he told reporters here.
He said that a large number of people from Bihar living in West Bengal share a lot of love and respect for Mamata Banerjee.
Responding to BJP’s allegations that the TMC had “ruined” West Bengal during its tenure, the RJD leader said the “entire country has been ruined under the Narendra Modi-led government”.
“I want to ask one question to Modi ji – you have been prime minister for more than 11 years, tell me one thing you have done for Bengal,” Yadav said.
The first phase of elections to the 294-member West Bengal assembly was held on April 23, while the second phase will take place on April 29. Votes will be counted on May 4.
