Top court affirms sanctity of EVMS, paper trail system
NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Friday dismissed a bundle of petitions that demanded 100% cross-verification of votes cast on Electronic Voting Machines (EVMS) with the Voter Verified Paper Audit Trails (VVPATS) or a return to the ballot paper system, underlining that “EVMS are simple, secure and userfriendly” and that the “integrity of the electoral process earned over years cannot be chaffed and overridden by baroque contemplations and speculations”.
The ruling came on the same day as the second phase of the Lok Sabha elections.
Writing separate but concurring opinions for the bench, justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta affirmed the credibility of EVMS and their integration with VVPATS while highlighting the stringent safeguards and protocols put in place by the Election Commission of India (ECI) to ensure free and fair elections.
Both judgments noted the robustness of India’s electoral process and urged a balanced approach to evaluating systems and institutions, as they further underscored the importance of evidence-based decision-making in safeguarding democratic principles. The judges asserted that the Supreme Court cannot allow the entire process of the ongoing general elections to be called into question and upended on mere apprehension and speculation.
The judgments also focussed on the practical challenges inherent in conducting elections in India, highlighting the extensive logistical operations required to ensure access to remote and diverse voting locations, and commending ECI for putting in place a stringent system of checks and balances to prevent any possibility of a miscount of votes.
The judges were in unison that the petitioners’ plea to returning to the ballot paper system is “foible and unsound” as well as “regressive”, having the potential of undoing the electoral reforms carried out till date. The judges further pointed out that apprehensions regarding tampering or data mismatches in the electoral process were “unfounded” in the absence of even a single instance of mismatch between EVM and VVPAT brought on record, defying all logic for the petitioners to demand 100% cross-verification.
Calling the verdict a “tight slap” to the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA), PM Modi said, “With the introduction of EVMS, they are no longer able to play their old game. Hence, they committed the sin of creating distrust against EVMS. They must apologise.”
The Opposition, however, said it will continue with its political campaign on greater use of VVPATS to increase public trust in the electoral process.
“We have taken note of the verdict of the 2-judge bench and our political campaign on the greater use of VVPATS to increase public trust in the electoral process will continue,” Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said on X.
Addressing concerns raised during the hearing, the bench proposed two forward-looking directions to enhance transparency in the electoral system, while clarifying that such directions do not have the effect of interrupting, protracting or stalling the counting of votes for the ongoing Lok Sabha elections.