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21 oppn parties file review plea in SC seeking direction to EC to verify 50% EVMs with VVPAT

The apex court had earlier declined the demand for matching of EVM-VVPAT results in 50 per cent cases, saying it will require huge manpower.

21 oppn parties file review plea in SC seeking direction to EC to verify 50% EVMs with VVPAT

West Bengal's Joint Chief Electoral Officer Anamika Majumder and Deputy Chief Electoral Officer Sumanta Roy demonstrate the usage of EVM and VVPAT during a voter awareness programme. (File Photo: IANS)

Twenty-one opposition parties on Wednesday filed a review petition before the Supreme Court seeking a direction to the Election Commission (EC) to verify 50 per cent of the EVMs using VVPAT.

The apex court had earlier declined the demand for matching of EVM-VVPAT results in 50 per cent cases, saying it will require huge manpower and will not be feasible in view of infrastructural difficulties.

However, the court directed the Election Commission to increase VVPAT verification from one EVM per constituency to five randomly selected EVMs in the General Elections.

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Directing the EC, Supreme Court bench headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi had said ”increasing the VVPAT verification from one EVM per constituency to five was to ensure the greatest degree of accuracy and satisfaction in the electoral process by both the political parties and the voters”.

The Election Commission had last month told the Supreme Court that the present method of counting the VVPAT slips was the most suitable. The poll panel justified the existing system of random counting of the VVPAT slips from one polling booth per assembly segment.

(With agency inputs)

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