Visakhapatnam: While Telugu Desam and YSR Congress involved in a blame game over data breach, Vizag-based intellectuals are worried about the security of citizen’s information.
The alleged theft of sensitive government data indicates that the service providers have failed in protecting the voters’ personal details, they say.
Citizens have reposed their trust in the government and submitted their private information to avail Aadhaar cards.
However, the recent incident proves that influential politicians can manipulate people’s personal data in the age of mobile apps. Political analysts have raised doubts on the unauthorised use of the voters’ data. They were also concerned about the names of the voters being deleted from the latest electoral rolls, along with the enrolment of bogus voters.
National Electoral Rolls Purification and Authorisation Programme was launched by Election Commission of India in 2015-16 for removing duplicate voter ID cards. Misusing this scheme, there was a large-scale unauthorised removal of voters' names from the electoral rolls in two Telugu states.
Former bureaucrat and social activist E.A.S. Sarma said, “Breach of confidentiality of the citizen's information is a serious offence punishable under the relevant IT laws, IPC and relevant election laws. The ECI should prosecute officials, politicians and private firms involved in it irrespective of the political hues.”
Demanding an independent investigation over the issue, Mr Sarma asked the ECI to book cases on those who are responsible and restore the names of all genuine voters in the electoral rolls. “Otherwise, this will erode the credibility of the electoral process. General elections cannot be conducted on the basis of incomplete electoral rolls,” he said.
