Bombay HC notice to EC on plea against decision to omit VVPATs

The Bombay High Court on Friday issued notice to the Maharashtra State Election Commission regarding a petition challenging its decision to not use Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) enabled electronic voting machines to conduct the Maharashtra local civic body elections scheduled to begin from December 2.

The Nagpur bench of the Bombay High Court headed by Justice Anil Kilor asked for the Maharashtra State Election Commission’s response to the petition by next week.

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According to the petition filed before the Nagpur bench, Congress leader Prafulla Gudadhe said that the Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) EVMs are essential for a transparent election process and to enable voters to verify that their votes have gone to candidates of their choice.

Gudadhe’s petition filed through his advocates Pawan Dahat and Nihal Singh Rathod, stated that if the Maharashtra State Election Commission does not use VVPAT enabled EVMs, then the local civic body polls should be held using ballot papers.

Congress leader Prafulla Gudadhe also urged the Nagpur bench to direct the Maharashtra State Election Commission to either conduct local civic body elections using ballot papers or quash the Commission’s decision to not use VVPAT machines.

Gudadhe requested the bench to restrain the Maharashtra State Election Commission SEC from using EVMs without VVPAT in any election, emphasising that the right to vote is a fundamental right and every citizen has the right to know and verify if his or her vote has indeed gone to candidates of their choice.

Gudadhe also referred to a 2013 Supreme Court judgment which had stated that VVPAT was an indispensable requirement to conduct free and fair elections.

“Without the use of VVPATs, Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) recording votes become unverifiable. There is no other method by which it can be ascertained if the vote which has been cast has been recorded properly,” Gudadhe stated in his plea.

Gudadhe’ plea stated that the Maharashtra State Election Commission is “hell bent” on using a non-transparent and unreliable system to conduct elections, at the cost of fairness”. “There is no rule that elections have to be conducted only through EVMs. Elections can be conducted through ballot papers if the election commission is facing a dearth of VVPAT machines,” Gudddhe’s petition stated.

Significantly, the Maharashtra State Election Commission had stated earlier that there is no provision in the laws or rules governing local civic body elections for the use of VVPAT-enabled EVMs.