New Delhi:

Tesla and SpaceX chief Elon Musk has advised against the use of electronic voting machines (EVMs), citing concerns about their potential vulnerabilities to hacking. His remarks come amidst growing debates over the security of EVMs worldwide, especially following allegations of irregularities in Puerto Rico’s recent primary elections.

“We should eliminate electronic voting machines. The risk of being hacked by humans or AI, while small, is still too high,” Musk posted on X.

We should eliminate electronic voting machines. The risk of being hacked by humans or AI, while small, is still too high. https://t.co/PHzJsoXpLh

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 15, 2024

The spotlight on EVM security has intensified due to recent controversies in Puerto Rico. The primary elections there were plagued by numerous irregularities linked to EVMs. However, a paper trail allowed election officials to identify and correct vote tallies.

Musk’s remark was in response to, Robert F Kennedy Jr, nephew of former US President John F Kennedy and an independent hopeful for the 2024 US Elections, who wrote, “Puerto Rico’s primary elections just experienced hundreds of voting irregularities related to electronic voting machines, according to the Associated Press. Luckily, there was a paper trail so the problem was identified and vote tallies corrected. What happens in jurisdictions where there is no paper trail?”

Kennedy Jr advocated for a return to paper ballots to prevent electronic interference in elections, ensuring that every vote is counted and elections remain secure.

While concerns over EVMs are gaining traction in the United States, the scenario in India presents a contrasting picture. India uses the third generation of EVMs, known as M3 EVMs, which are designed to be tamper-proof. These machines enter a ‘Safety Mode’ and become inoperable if any tampering attempts are detected.

A dedicated team of professors from three prestigious Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) has been instrumental in the latest upgrades of Indian EVMs. The Election Commission of India (ECI) is supported by an eminent Technical Expert Committee (TEC) on EVMs, ensuring that the devices are robust and secure.

READ | Top Experts From IIT Who Helped Design India’s Most Tamper-Proof EVMs

Professor Dinesh K Sharma, a specialist in microelectronics and solid-state electronics from IIT Bombay, told NDTV, “Indian EVMs are different from other EVMs in the world. The M3 EVMs have no connection to any other device, not even mains power supply.”

The Supreme Court this year addressed the issue of cross-verification of votes cast on EVMs through paper slips generated by Voter-Verified Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) machines. A bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta rejected petitions seeking 100 per cent cross-verification, maintaining the current practice of verifying five randomly selected EVMs per Assembly constituency.

READ | “Blindly Doubting System…”: Big Supreme Court Order On VVPAT Verification

However, the court issued two directives to the Election Commission. Firstly, after symbols are loaded into an EVM, the symbol loading unit must be sealed and secured in containers signed by the candidates and their representatives. Secondly, these sealed containers, along with the EVMs, should be kept in storerooms for at least 45 days after the declaration of results.

 

Dominican Republic President Luis Abinader was re-elected on May 19 for another four-year term, an endorsement of his handling of the economy and tough policies toward migration from Haiti.

The two nations share the Caribbean island of Hispaniola, but the much more prosperous Dominican Republic stands in stark contrast to its poverty and gang violence-plagued neighbor.

The volatility across the border has been a key issue in the election campaign, but Mr. Abinader, 56, also boasted success in managing the economy and the Covid-19 pandemic.

As the number of ballots counted passed 21%, his main rival, former president Leonel Fernandez, conceded defeat and congratulated Mr. Abinader.

“I am and will be the president of all Dominicans,” Mr. Abinader said in a speech before hundreds of supporters at his campaign Headquarters in the capital Santo Domingo.

“The people have expressed themselves clearly… I accept the trust I have received and the obligation not to disappoint,” Mr. Abinader said shortly after his two top rivals, including Mr. Fernandez, threw in the towel.

“I will not fail them,” he told supporters, who chanted “Four more years! Four more years!”

With 25% of votes counted, Mr. Abinader was ahead with more than 59%, fully 30 points clear of Fernandez, with 27%. A win with more than 50% of the vote is required to avoid a runoff.

Mr. Abel Martinez was in third with 10.7%, while the other six candidates barely topped 3% of the total.

‘Things can improve’

Mr. Abinader is a U.S.-trained economist of Lebanese descent and multi-millionaire heir of a family tourism and construction empire.

He was elected during the Covid pandemic in 2020 on promises of restoring trust in the Government after several high-profile corruption scandals embroiling public officials in the top tourist destination.

Once in office, he began building a 164-kilometre (102-mile) concrete wall along the border with Haiti to keep out undocumented migrants.

He had more than 250,000 migrants deported in 2023.

The president enjoys domestic approval ratings of around 70% — more than when he was elected — despite international pressure for the Dominican Republic to welcome more refugees.

The migration issue has not been a divisive one in the election, with both Fernandez and Mr. Abinader backing the deportation of Haitian migrants and increased border security.

Since he came to power, Mr. Abinader has increased immigration raids and multiplied deportations, built a wall on part of the border, and closed migration from Haiti.

Voter Javier Taveras, 38, told AFP on election day that he “likes the current position of maintaining sovereignty,” though not “the abuse against our Haitian brothers.”

As for the border wall, “I don’t know how effective it is,” he said.

A Gallup poll showed 47.5% of Dominicans believe the country was “on the right path” and 40% believed the economy is doing better than before.

Maria Ramona Antonio, a 74-year-old dentist, said she believes Abinader has done well and voted for his re-election.

“Look how tourism is going, which is the best source of work for us… the roads built, those people in need who now have health insurance,” she told AFP in Santo Domingo.

Mr. Fernandez had accused the Government of manipulating growth data. The World Bank reports that the Dominican economy grew 2.5% in 2023.

“I hope for economic stability from the next government,” said voter Taveras.

Opinion polls also showed Mr. Abinader’s Modern Revolutionary Party (PRM) bound for a majority in Congress. Experts agree that the party will fare well in elections for the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies.

The party won 120 of 150 mayoral posts in February municipal elections, considered a litmus test ahead of the general vote.

“We are sweeping, we are on top,” voter Joney Dotel, a 38-year-old psychologist, said at the PRM Headquarters.

“The country continues with change, and it is in favor of democracy.”

Mr. Abinader rose to power on an anti-corruption platform. His minister of public works, Deligne Ascencion assured on May 19 that the elections were clean, despite complaints from opposition camps of vote-buying.

The country’s electoral commission reported it has not received any formal complaint of such irregularities.

Mumbai:

As the voting for the fifth phase of Lok Sabha elections got underway, veteran Bollywood actor Paresh Rawal exercised his democratic duty by casting his vote at a polling booth in Mumbai on Monday morning.

After casting his vote, Mr Rawal interacted with the media, emphasizing the importance of participating in elections.

#WATCH | Bollywood actor Paresh Rawal says, “…There should be some provisions for those who don’t vote, like an increase in tax or some other punishment.” pic.twitter.com/sueN0F2vMD

— ANI (@ANI) May 20, 2024

“You will say, government doesn’t do this, doesn’t do that… If you don’t vote today, then you will be responsible, not the government,” he stated, urging citizens to take responsibility for their civic duties.

He also suggested implementing penalties for those who abstain from voting. “There should be some provisions for those who don’t vote, like an increase in tax or some other punishment,” he added.

Elections to six Lok Sabha seats in Mumbai are underway for Phase 5 of the ongoing Lok Sabha elections. The constituencies voting today include Mumbai North, Mumbai North West, Mumbai North East, Mumbai North Central, Mumbai South, and Mumbai South Central.

Several Bollywood celebrities, including Akshay Kumar, Shahid Kapoor, Sanya Malhotra, Rajkumar Rao, and Janhvi Kapoor, cast their votes at their respective polling booths in Mumbai earlier in the day.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Two attacks against mayoral candidates in Mexico’s June elections have left nine persons dead in the southern state of Chiapas, the Prosecutor’s Office in the organised crime-plagued region said on Sunday.

The two candidates survived, though one was wounded, in the onslaughts on Saturday night and early Sunday in the municipalities of Villa Corzo and Mapastepec, it said in a statement.

The attacks marked an escalation of violence in Chiapas against politicians intending to seek office in the June 2 vote, when Mexicans will also elect a new President.

Last week, six persons, including a minor and mayoral candidate Lucero Lopez, were killed in an ambush.

More than two dozen politicians have been killed since September last year, according to the NGO Data Civica.

The toll increases to more than 50 people if relatives and other victims of those attacks are counted.

Spiraling criminal violence has seen more than 4,50,000 people murdered in Mexico since the government of then-president Felipe Calderon launched a controversial military offensive against drug cartels in 2006.

Bengaluru:

An FIR was registered on Sunday against BJP Office Secretary Lokesh Ambekallu and two others for illegally carrying Rs 2 crore cash in a car, the office of the Chief Electoral Officer said.

The matter came to light on Saturday when the Static Surveillance Team (SST) of Chamrajpet intercepted a car here carrying cash of Rs 2 crore at 4.05 pm and intimated income tax officials, they said.

According to the EC officials, the Income Tax department summoned office bearers of the BJP and concluded that there was no violation under IT laws as the source of the money was legitimate. But as per ECI (Election Commission of India) direction, cash of more than 10,000 given to party functionaries and candidates’ agents for political activities shall be done through cheque or online mode.

The poll body had also advised political parties not to carry huge amounts of cash.

As there is a violation of ECI directions and the recipient’s list was not produced, based on the suspicion that the money may be used for inducements in the election, an FIR under relevant sections of the Representation of the People Act and IPC, related to bribery and undue influence was registered, it said.

“Permission was obtained from the court on Sunday to file FIR against Lokesh Ambekallu, Secretary, BJP state office, Venkatesh Prasad and Gangadhar by the SST of 168-Chamrajpet Assembly Constituency of the Bengaluru Central Parliamentary Constituency at Cottonpet police station for illegally carrying Rs two crore in cash,” the poll body added.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Mysuru:

In India, the world’s most populous democracy, elections mean millions of voters boasting a forefinger daubed in purple, and a factory in the southern city of Mysuru is the source of all of the nation’s indelible ink.

For decades, India has used the ink, made primarily from silver nitrate, to mark voters after they have cast their ballot to prevent duplicate votes and fraud. When exposed to sunlight, the ink stains the skin and fingernails purple, lasts for about two weeks and is almost impossible to erase.

Founded in 1937, Mysore Paints And Varnish Limited is the only company authorised to produce the ink in India, which is preparing to hold general elections this year. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is widely expected to win another term in power.

Since the start of the year, the company has shipped a record 2.7 million ink vials to mark the 970 million people registered to vote.

“We’ve not had a single rejection this year,” said Vishalakshi K, the company’s quality control manager.

The most populous state of Uttar Pradesh placed the biggest order, while the tiny island territory of Lakshadweep put in the smallest order for just 110 vials, company executives said.

The election commission has set the price per vial at Rs 174 ($2.1), giving the company, whose main business is making paints used on public transport vehicles, an income in excess of $7 million from the vote.

Mysore Paints also has orders for indelible ink from several countries in Asia that plan to use it in their elections.

Despite the difficulty in removing the ink, voters have been known to use makeup-removing micellar water, lemon juice and raw papaya sap on the purple stain, often with little success.

To make sure these fraudsters’ plans are foiled, Mohammed Irfan, the company’s managing director, said election officials must wipe voters’ fingers clean before applying the ink.

“This will ensure the ink stays on and no one can wipe it off,” he said.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Islamabad:

Lawmakers were sworn in during the first sitting of Pakistan’s new parliament Thursday, three weeks after an election marred by widespread allegations of rigging.

Pakistan’s February 8 poll took place with ex-prime minister Imran Khan jailed and barred from running, and his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party targeted by a campaign of arrests and censorship.

Khan’s followers defied the crackdown to win more seats than any other party but the military-backed Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) is set to shut them out of power with a coalition government.

According to the coalition agreement, former premier Shehbaz Sharif — who ousted Khan in a 2022 no-confidence vote — will be elected prime minister again by new lawmakers in the coming days.

Parliamentarians began arriving at the 336-seat National Assembly in Islamabad on Thursday morning and took their oaths of office in unison around 11:30 am (0630 GMT).

PTI members were forced to run as independents in the election but some arrived at parliament carrying portraits of Khan, brandishing them in defiance as Sharif and other PML-N leaders entered the chamber.

“In democracy, the parliament is a sacred place,” PTI’s acting chief Gohar Ali Khan told reporters as he arrived to be sworn in.

“Those who don’t have public trust and don’t have the mandate should not be sitting here.”

Gohar held aloft a poster reading “Release Imran Khan” as he signed the register of parliamentarians but the moment was omitted from state TV broadcasts as cameras cut away.

The Sharif family’s PML-N has agreed to govern with the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) run by the dynasty of~CHECK~ ex-premier Benazir Bhutto, as well as several smaller factions.

In return, the PPP has been promised the office of president for their patriarch and Bhutto’s widower, Asif Ali Zardari.

Cabinet positions have yet to be announced.

Analysts regard the broad alliance as a shaky enterprise, facing overlapping economic and security crises plaguing the nation of more than 240 million.

Monitors have also warned the PML-N coalition may suffer from a perceived lack of legitimacy by portions of the public sceptical over whether their votes were counted.

Despite PTI-aligned candidates exceeding expectations, Imran Khan claims the election was brazenly rigged to prevent his party’s landslide return to power.

Islamabad cut mobile internet signal nationwide on election day, citing security reasons but declining to give specifics. Results were also delayed, further stoking rigging claims.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Fertilizers and diesel prices have increased,” said All India Kisan Saba leader from Rajasthan Amra Ram. “Production is decreasing due to no significant increase in MSP. The Centre should have implemented [recommendations of the] Swaminathan Committee report,” he added.
| Photo Credit: AJAY VERMA

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) has increased the Minimum Support Prices (MSP) for all Rabi crops for the finanicial year 2024-25. The increase for wheat, the major Rabi crop, is ₹150 per quintal and the new price will be ₹2,275.

Farmers’ organisations have criticised the “meagre” increase. The Centre procures wheat from about a dozen wheat-growing districts in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. The two States are among those that will witness upcoming Assembly elections.

Welcoming the announcement, Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar said the policies of the Centre have helped farmers to make agriculture a profitable vocation. He said the MSP is much higher than the input cost.

The highest increase in MSP compared with last year is for lentils (masur) at ₹425 per quintal (new price: ₹6,425 per quintal) followed by rapeseed and mustard at ₹200 per quintal (new MSP: ₹5,650 per quintal). For wheat and safflower, the increase is ₹150 per quintal (₹2,275 and ₹5,800 per quintal, respectively). For barley (new MSP: ₹1,850) and gram (new MSP: ₹5,440), the increase is ₹115 and ₹105 per quintal, respectively.

Farmers’ organisations said the MSP did not match the increase in input costs. “Fertilizers and diesel prices have increased,” said All India Kisan Saba leader from Rajasthan Amra Ram. “Production is decreasing due to no significant increase in MSP. The Centre should have implemented [recommendations of the] Swaminathan Committee report,” he added. Five districts in Rajasthan and about eight districts in Madya Pradesh contribute to the wheat procurement by Food Corporation of India.

Coordinator of Bharatiya Kisan Union (Ekta Ugraan) Pavel Kussa said the increase was not sufficient. “Where is the procurement? Without procurement MSP is meaningless. Such announcements do not have any meaning when the government goes away from procurement and leaves everyting to private traders,” Mr. Kussa said.

Separately, the Centre also announced the final estimated production of major crops during 2022-23. Rice production is estimated at 1,357.55 lakh tonnes, wheat at 1,105.54 lakh tonnes, nutri and coarse cereals at 573.19 lakh tonnes, maize at 380.85 lakh tonnes and pulses at 260.58 lakh tonnes.

Oilseeds production could touch 413.55 lakh tonnes, while sugarcane output could reach 4,905.33 lakh tonnes. Cotton is estimated at 336.60 lakh bales of 170 kg each and jute at 93.92 lakh bales of 180 kg each.

Oil pump jack is seen in front of displayed Israeli flag in this illustration taken, October 8, 2023.
| Photo Credit: Reuters

A protracted Israel-Hamas conflict could spur oil prices beyond India’s comfort zone and even if the government holds retail fuel prices ahead of critical elections, wholesale prices may spike and a higher import bill could pressure the rupee, according to experts.

Brent crude oil prices rose over 3% on Monday, crossing $87 a barrel even as equity markets around the world, including India, came under pressure as investors turned risk-averse and rushed to safe haven assets like gold.

Fears of a wider conflict between Israel and Hamas not only pulled down the NSE Nifty 0.72% or 141.2 points to 19,512.4, but also dragged trading volumes on the NSE to “the lowest in many weeks”, said Deepak Jasani, head of retail research at HDFC Securities.

Broad market indices fell more than the Nifty even as the advance-decline ratio fell sharply to 0.28:1, he added, stressing that the conflict is the latest negative trigger for markets that are already fretting about macroeconomic uncertainties in Europe and China, hawkish central banks and rising oil prices.

Also read: Israel-Palestine conflict LIVE updates on October 9

Beyond the short-term effect on markets, Bank of Baroda chief economist Madan Sabnavis said that if the war persists for even a fortnight or more, the oil dynamics will change. Crude oil prices going beyond $90 a barrel would pose trouble for the world economy as well as India.

“Iran joining the fray can affect the sea routes and push up transport and insurance costs. Higher crude prices will distort our balance of trade and current account deficit, thus putting pressure on the rupee,” Mr. Sabnavis noted.

For the government, there could be fiscal implications. With elections looming in several States and for the Lok Sabha in 2024, raising fuel prices may be an unlikely option, but higher costs will have to be absorbed either by oil marketing firms or the exchequer.

“Retail inflation can still be controlled by the government if it chooses to keep fuel prices unchanged. But wholesale price inflation will increase for sure. Some airlines have already increased fares after ATF price hikes, which is also inflationary,” the economist said.

Export earnings could also be hit as Israel buys around $5.5-6 billion of refined petroleum products a year from India.

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