SC To Announce Verdict Over Matching VVPAT Records And With EVM Votes

The Supreme Court of India today (April 24) is set to announce its verdict on a series of petitions requesting guidelines to match Voter-Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) records with votes registered through Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) during elections.

After two days of hearings, Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta reserved judgment on the petitions on April 18. Throughout the extensive hearing, the bench engaged in a comprehensive discussion with an Election Commission of India (ECI) official to grasp the functioning of EVMs.

Senior advocate Maninder Singh, representing the poll panel, assured the court that EVMs are standalone devices, impervious to tampering, albeit acknowledging the possibility of human error. Justice Datta emphasized the importance of maintaining the integrity of the electoral process, urging Singh to allay any concerns both within and outside the courtroom.

Responding to the Election Commission’s stance, the Supreme Court cautioned petitioners against excessive suspicion. The bench emphasized the need to acknowledge positive efforts by the ECI rather than criticizing everything.

In an earlier hearing on April 16, the bench expressed reservations about the manual counting process, highlighting the complexity of the electoral process in India and cautioning against undermining it.

The Voter-Verified Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) allows voters to verify if their vote was correctly cast and recorded for their chosen candidate. VVPAT generates a paper slip stored in a sealed envelope, accessible in case of disputes. Currently, VVPAT slips from five randomly selected EVMs in each Assembly segment undergo verification.