Maharashtra: Thackeray vs Shinde battle out in open amid Mumbai EVM hacking row. All you need to know

Amid the electronic voting machine (EVM) hacking row in the Mumbai North West Lok Sabha seat, the two Shiv Senas have trained guns at one another. Leaders of the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT) have demanded that the CCTV footage of the counting day should be released. 

The controversy around media reports alleging EVM hacking in the Mumbai North West Lok Sabha seat erupted when Tesla CEO and X boss Elon Musk wrote that electronic voting machines need to be eliminated. "We should eliminate electronic voting machines. The risk of being hacked by humans or AI, while small, is still too high," Musk wrote. After this, opposition leaders including Aaditya Thackeray, Rahul Gandhi, and Akhilesh Yadav alleged EVM hacking.

Ravindra Waikar won the Mumbai North West Lok Sabha seat against Shiv Sena (UBT) candidate Amol Kirtikar by a margin of merely 48 votes. While the Thackeray-led Shiv Sena got 9 seats, the Shinde faction won on 7 seats. 

Aaditya Thackeray, Prithviraj Chavan question EC

Thackeray's son and Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray said the Election Commission does not have the courage to release the CCTV footage of the counting centre. He also claimed that the BJP would have won only 40 Lok Sabha seats and not 240 if polling was held using ballot papers and not EVMs. 

"We have always had suspicions about this regime tampering with EVMs. Even Elon Musk has expressed his views, claiming everything can be hacked. Despite several requests, the Election Commission does not have the courage to release the CCTV footage of the counting day that would support our claims," he said. 

Shiv Sena (UBT) ally Congress also questioned the poll result of the Mumbai North West Lok Sabha. Senior Congress leader and former Maharashtra CM Prithviraj Chavan said the poll result of the constituency should be stayed. 

He added that the poll body must call a meeting of all parties and discuss the issue thoroughly. "There must be a probe into the unauthorised use of the mobile phone. The FIR report has not been made public," he said. 

Eknath Shinde fires back

Soon after this, Maharashtra CM Eknath Shinde asked whether doubts were being cast on the EVM's sanctity because his candidate won from the constituency. He also said that people's mandate favoured Waikar and further sought to compare his party's performance with that of rival Sena. 

Shinde said his party won 7 of the 15 seats it contested with a "strike rate of 48 per cent". He added that Sena (UBT), which won 9 of the 21 seats it fought on, had a "strike rate of 42 per cent." He also claimed that his Shiv Sena secured 2 lakh more votes than the candidates of the opposition MVA in Mumbai. 

ECI issues clarification

Returning Officer Vandana Suryavanshi said in a press conference that the voting machines do not need an OTP to function. She added that the results are generated by pressing a button, calling the news of EVM being hacked fake and unverified. 

"This is a complete lie being spread by a newspaper, which some leaders are using to create a false narrative," she said. Suryavanshi added that a notice has also been issued to the Mumbai-based newspaper under relevant IPC sections for defamation and spreading fake news. 

"Safeguards include conducting everything in the presence of candidates or their agents. Counting of ETPBS happens in physical form (paper Ballots) and not electronically as falsely claimed." Regarding Waikar's case, she confirmed that an FIR has been filed and appropriate action will be taken. 

Police case against Ravindra Waikar's relative

Meanwhile, a police case was filed against Mangesh Pandilkar, brother-in-law of Ravindra Waikar, elected MP of the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena, for allegedly using a mobile phone within the counting centre. Poll officer Dinesh Gurav was also implicated in the FIR registered on a complaint by Suchitra Patil, an assistant election officer. 

It was stated in the FIR that a mobile phone was used to unlock the EVM. The FIR as accessed by India Today mentioned that Gurav, an election staff member who worked as an encore operator, was allowed to use a mobile phone for data compilation, via which an OTP was generated for data entry. 

It is being alleged that Pandilkar used the same phone for making and receiving calls. "ECI says this phone and OTP has nothing to do with EVM machines. This phone is used for data entry purposes only and this is also the job of the encore operator," the FIR mentioned. It also states that no electronic devices or mobile phones are allowed inside the counting centre.