Rahul Gandhi terms EVMs ‘black boxes’ after Tesla CEO Elon Musk stirs row
Neeraj Mohan
New Delhi, June 16
SpaceX and Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s remarks backing the elimination of electronic voting machines (EVMs) due to hacking risks have sparked a political storm in India, with opposition INDIA bloc leaders targeting the government and the ruling regime calling the devices “tamper-proof”.
Musk also rubbished BJP leader and former IT Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar’s claim that the Indian EVMs couldn’t be tampered with, asserting “anything can be hacked”. “We should eliminate electronic voting machines. The risk of being hacked by humans or AI, while small, is still too high,” Musk posted on social media platform X. The remarks came in reaction to concerns raised by Robert F Kennedy Jr, an independent candidate in the US presidential elections who flagged irregularities related to the EVMs used in Puerto Rico’s primary elections.
Govt junks charge
We should eliminate EVMs. The risk of being hacked, while small, is still too high… Anything can be hacked. —Elon Musk, Spacex CEO
It’s a huge sweeping generalisation that suggests no one can build a secure digital hardware… our EVMs are tamper-proof. —Rajeev Chandrasekhar, Ex-It Minister
The EVMs in India are a ‘black box’ and nobody is allowed to scrutinise them. —Rahul Gandhi, Congress MP
Chandrasekhar swiftly responded to Musk’s remark, calling it a “huge sweeping generalisation” that suggested no one could build a secure digital hardware, to which Musk responded that “anything can be hacked”. The INDIA bloc leadership seized on Musk’s comments to challenge the EC’s assertions that the EVMs were tamper-proof. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi quickly cited Musk’s comments, echoing the sentiment and labelling Indian EVMs as a “black box”.
Sharing Musk’s post on X, Rahul stated, “The EVMs in India are a ‘black box’, and nobody is allowed to scrutinise them. Serious concerns are being raised about transparency in electoral process. Democracy ends up becoming a sham.” SP chief Akhilesh Yadavalso saw Musk’s remark as a boost to his demand for eliminating EVMs in the coming elections in the country.
