PUDUCHERRY: Leader of the Opposition in the Puducherry Assembly and DMK organiser R Siva alleged that confidential information of voters in the union territory is being illegally accessed and misused.
Calling it a serious threat to democracy, Siva, in a statement, claimed that personal details of voters, including mobile phone numbers and constituency information, were being stolen by an unidentified group. He strongly condemned the incident, terming it an “anti-democratic act” and alleged that it was part of a conspiracy backed by the BJP to undermine the electoral process.
According to Siva, voters across Puducherry have been receiving calls conducting so-called “fake polls” since December 3 in which respondents are asked to press one or two buttons after being told the names of constituency-wise MLAs. He said the callers do not disclose their identity or the organisation conducting the survey.
Siva further alleged that these calls later extended to politically motivated surveys assessing the performance of the chief minister and individual MLAs. The precise mention of voters’ constituency details in these calls, Siva said, clearly indicates that the data had been sourced from the Election Commission’s electoral rolls.
Accusing the poll panel of negligence, Siva said its failure to safeguard voter data had compromised the confidentiality and security of citizens’ personal information.
Warning of protests, he said opposition parties would launch agitations if the Election Commission and the Puducherry Cyber Crime Unit fail to initiate immediate and strict action to identify those responsible and prevent further misuse of voter details.