Supreme Court’s Limited Oversight in EVM Verification Petitions

During a hearing on petitions regarding the verification of votes cast via Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) with Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT), the Supreme Court emphasized that it lacks control over elections, stating that the Election Commission of India (ECI) has addressed doubts on EVMs. Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta sought clarification from the ECI on technical aspects but maintained that they cannot dictate the functioning of another constitutional authority.

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Broader Examination of VVPAT Usage Initiates Supreme Court’s Attention

Justice Khanna highlighted the court’s need for clarification on technical aspects like the location and programmability of microcontrollers, the presence of Symbol Loading Units, and the storage duration of election data. The court stressed factual accuracy and requested the presence of an Election Commission official to address these queries directly.

However, a recent petition before the Supreme Court sought to count all VVPAT paper slips in elections instead of relying solely on random selection. The court issued a notice to the ECI earlier this month, indicating a broader examination of VVPAT usage in electoral processes.

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