Electronic Voting Machines

EVM *Electronic Voting Machines* are being used frequently in Indian Elections a
nd there has been a lot of controversy surrounding their use. this is my take on
their use and how it affects poll results
i was a polling observer at a polling station during the last general elections.
It was purely money power at play. With most voters not understanding the worki
ngs of democracy, the younger, educated voters voted for change and for a party
not in the ruling alliance while the older voters voted for status quo and for t
he ruling party. The older voters who supported status quo collected their dues
in the form of money and refreshments at the doorstep of the polling booth. It w
as all above board with the booth security staff, the candidates and the officia
ls looking on. Younger voters (less than 30 years) are not yet sufficient in num
ber in our country. We all know what happened in the 2000 elections in USA, a co
untry composed of immigrants (the best from every country). In India a unique co
mbination of forces shaped the dream run for the BJP with Vajpayee becoming PM.
There were charismatic leaders supporting the redoubtable Mr V then. I don't thi
nk these events can be repeated in the near future with the younger generation o
f hopeful voters being small in number at present. We will be able to see true d
emocracy at work only after a couple of decades. As far as EVMs are concerned th
e policy is no overt security is the best policy and we all know from network th
eory the most chaotic network is the most robust and stable. Most people in this
blog are imagining as in movies that only one group can control EVMs. If one pa
rty can control, so can others, and essentially you have chaos with no apparent
order and this is precisely how democracy works. It is because the ruling echelo
ns have access to more money and a willing polity which accepts freebies that el
ections produce the present order of governance in India.