EVM-VVPAT Verification Case: An NGO called 'Association for Democratic Reforms', one of the petitioners, has sought the court to reverse the Election Commission's 2017 decision to replace the transparent glass on VVPAT machines with an opaque glass through which a voter can see the slip only when the light is on for seven seconds.

EVM-VVPAT Verification Case: The Supreme Court on Friday rejected all the petitions seeking complete cross-verification of votes cast using EVMs with Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT). The two judges authored separate, yet concurring, judgments on the matter. "We have rejected the prayer for paper ballot voting, complete EVM-VVPAT verification and physical deposit of VVPAT slips," the Court said while pronouncing the order, as quoted by Bar And Bench.

"While balanced perspective is important but blindly doubting a system can breed skepticism and thus meaningful criticism is needed. Be it judiciary, legislature etc. democracy is all about maintaining harmony and trust among all the pillars. By nurturing a culture of trust and collaboration, we can strengthen the voice of our democracy," the Court said.

The top court, however, gave two directions and said that after the completion of the symbol loading process, the Symbol Loading Unit (SLU) should be sealed and stored for at least 45 days. The second direction issued by the Supreme Court is that there will be an option for candidates to get the microcontroller program of EVMs to be checked by a team of engineers after the declaration of results, such a request is to be made by the candidate within seven days after the declaration of results.

"That on completion of the symbol loading process in the EVM undertaken on or after 01.05.2024, the symbol loading unit should be sealed and secured in containers. The candidates and their representatives shall sign the seal. The sealed containers containing the SLUs shall be kept in the store rooms along with the EVMs at least for 45 days post the declaration of results. They should be opened and sealed like EVMs," the bench said in its order.

"The burnt memory semicontroller in 5% of the EVMs that is the Control Unit, Ballot Unit and the VVPAT per assembly constituency per parliamentary constituency shall be checked and verified by a team of engineers from the manufacturers of the EVM post the announcement of results on a written request by candidates 2 and 3. Such a request to be made within 7 days of the declaration of the results. The actual cost to be borne by the candidate making the request. Expenses to be refunded in case the EVMs are found to be tampered," the top court's second direction reads.

After a two-day hearing, the bench had on April 18 reserved its verdict on the pleas. However, the matter was listed again on Wednesday as the court wanted some clarifications from the EC.

A bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta had on Wednesday said it cannot "control the elections" or issue directions simply because doubts have been raised about the efficacy of Electronic Voting Machines (EVM), as it reserved its judgement on the clutch of petitions, which also claimed the polling devices could be tinkered with to manipulate the results.

The court said it can't change the minds of people who doubt electronic voting machines (EVMs) and want to use paper ballots instead. The bench also looked at the Election Commission's responses to questions it asked. The court asked the Election Commission five questions about how EVMs work, like whether the tiny computers inside them can be changed.

An NGO called 'Association for Democratic Reforms', one of the petitioners, has sought the court to reverse the Election Commission's 2017 decision to replace the transparent glass on VVPAT machines with an opaque glass through which a voter can see the slip only when the light is on for seven seconds. The pleas also want the court to make the Election Commission bring back the old system of paper ballots.

Lok Sabha Election 2024 Phase 2 Voting:

Polling for the second phase of the Lok Sabha elections started in 88 parliamentary constituencies across 12 states and a Union Territory. While 89 constituencies were slated to go to polls in the second phase, voting in Madhya Pradesh's Betul was advanced to the third phase on May 7 following the death of the BSP candidate in the fray. Out of the 88 constituencies in the second phase, 73 are general seats, while 6 are reserved for Scheduled Tribes (ST) and 9 for Scheduled Castes (SC).