Karnataka Minister for Electronics, Information Technology and Biotechnology, Priyank Kharge has written to the Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar on September 6, reiterating his proposal for a “court-monitored ethical hackathon and audit of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs).”
Priyank had first made this proposal in a letter to the CEC on December 3, 2024, where he detailed discrepancies and vulnerabilities in EVMs and argued that a hackathon would allow for a thorough assessment of the machines. “If the machines are tamper-proof, this would only strengthen public trust. Conversely, resistance to such scrutiny risks eroding confidence in the impartiality of the system,” he had written then. His appeal comes amid the Congress and the Karnataka government’s push for ballot paper-based local body polls, a demand strongly opposed by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
He had also noted that while the Election Commission had issued a similar challenge to political parties in 2017, political groups lacked the technical expertise to test the machines effectively. Instead, he suggested involving research institutions such as the Indian Institute of Science, IITs, IIITs, and reputed private technology R&D organisations, with the exercise being held under judicial and industry oversight.
“Karnataka is well placed to carry out such a transparent exercise under judicial and industry oversight,” he said.
On August 21, 2025, he repeated the proposal on X, citing the Supreme Court-ordered EVM recount in Buana Lakhu village, Panipat, which overturned the declared result. “This only reinforces what was long suspected but never tested, that our electoral system has loopholes and vulnerabilities which cannot be brushed aside,” he posted.
With no response to his earlier communication, he has now reminded the CEC of the proposal. “At a time when serious questions are being raised about the independence of institutions and the integrity of our elections, it becomes even more urgent to adopt proposals that improve transparency. Ignoring them only deepens doubts,” he wrote in his September 6 letter.