AAP hacked 'look-alike' gadget, not our EVM, says Election Commission

In Delhi Assembly, AAP MLA Saurabh Bhardwaj showed 'live demonstration' on how EVMs can be tampered

The Election Commission (EC) on Tuesday rejected the claim of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) that its EVMs can be hacked, saying the machine hacked in the Delhi assembly was a "look-alike" gadget and not an actual equipment used by it.

"It is common sense that gadgets other than ECI-EVMs can be programmed to perform in a pre-determined way, but it simply cannot be implied that ECI-EVMs will behave in the same manner because they are technically secured and function under an elaborate administrative and security protocol," the Commission said in a statement.

The "so-called" demonstration on "extraneous and duplicate gadgets" which are not owned by the EC "cannot be exploited to influence our intelligent citizens and electorate to assail or vilify the EVMs used by the Commission in its electoral process, it added.

Earlier today, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had dared the EC to provide an electronic voting machine (EVM) to the AAP, claiming it can be tampered with in '90 seconds' flat.

Later during a day-long special sitting of the Delhi Assembly, AAP MLA Saurabh Bhardwaj put on a "live demonstration" on how EVMs can be programmed "to favour" any political party.