'Everything cannot be suspected' tells SC to petitioners doubting EVM machines
New Delhi, Apr 18: Underscoring the importance of voter satisfaction and trust in the electoral system, the Supreme Court on Thursday told petitioners who sought its direction to go back to using ballot papers not to suspect the efficacy of Electronic Voting Machines (EVM) and appreciate if the Election Commission does good work.
A bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta, which reserved its verdict on a batch of pleas seeking complete cross-verification of votes cast using EVMs with Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT), said over suspicion of everything is a problem.
The VVPAT is an independent vote verification system which enables electors to see whether their votes have been cast correctly.
The bench made the remarks when advocate Prashant Bhushan, appearing for petitioner NGO 'Association for Democratic Reforms' (ADR), sought reversal of the poll panel'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.
"I understand it is the election eve. At least the bulb which glows for seven seconds should be allowed to glow continuously after the button is pressed in the EVM," Bhushan pleaded.
The bench, which interacted for nearly an hour with senior deputy election commissioner Nitesh Kumar Vyas to understand the functioning of EVMs, told Bhushan that voter satisfaction and trust are at the core of the electoral process.
"Mr. Bhushan, now you are going too far. This is too much. Whether it's transparent or translucent glass on a VVPAT machine or the glowing of a bulb, ultimately it is the voter's satisfaction and trust (that matters). The bulb only helps you see better, that's all," the bench said.
It said, "Everything cannot be suspected. You (Bhushan) cannot be critical of everything. If they (the EC) have done something good, you have to appreciate it. You don't have to be critical of everything."
Bhushan said he is not casting any aspersion on the poll panel but possibility for improvement exists.
Justice Khanna told him, "Agree. But if they have improved things within four corners of law, then it is fine. Bulb or no bulb, how does it matter? If an explanation is given, then you must appreciate it. Over suspicion of everything is a problem. A voter has to satisfy himself, that's all. They gave the explanation for the improvement, you heard them and everyone heard them."
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, who was in the courtroom, said as an officer of the court he is submitting that these efforts by petitioners, of doubting the efficacy of EVMs, on the eve of election has an impact on voter percentage.
"By these efforts the vote percentage gets affected. People may think that something is wrong. Democratic choice of voter is being made into a joke despite repeated rebukes to them (petitioners) by this court. I have asked my side to be ready for planted news reports and articles. Every time there is an important hearing, planted news reports and articles comes up," Mehta said.
The bench asked him to leave it at that and clarified that the ADR petition was filed last year and it was the court's fault that it could not be heard.
"Yes, some new petitions have come now but the one in which Mr. Bhushan is appearing was filed long back. We have learnt to deal with comments on social media and people have freedom to post their opinion on social media," Justice Khanna told Mehta.
During the nearly day-long hearing, the bench posed several questions to the election commission official and said, "There seems to be some gap between what is available in public domain and what should be available in public domain. That needs to be bridged."
Emphasising that voter's trust has to be maintained and protected, the bench said the integrity of the entire electoral process must be ensured
On the prayer of the petitioners that paper ballots should be used instead of EVMs, the bench said, "Paper ballots have huge drawbacks and we don't want to think about it. Instead, we were thinking of using barcodes for political parties in future but that would be a humongous task."
Senior advocate Santosh Paul, appearing for one of the petitioners, said several developed countries have gone back to using ballot papers in elections.
"The Indian system is working well and voting percentage is increasing in every election which shows people are having faith in the system. We all know what used to happen with ballot papers," the bench said referring to rigging and booth capturing during elections in the past.
Senior advocate Maninder Singh, appearing for the poll panel, said EVMs are standalone machines and cannot be tampered with but possibility of human error cannot be ruled out.
Underscoring that the electoral process has to have sanctity, Justice Datta told Singh, "You have to allay the apprehensions, both in the court and outside the court. Let nobody have the apprehension that something which is expected is not being done."
On April 16, the top court had deprecated criticism of EVMs and calls for reverting to ballot papers, saying the electoral process in India is a "humongous task" and attempts should not be made to "bring down the system".
The seven-phase Lok Sabha polls begin on April 19.
The ADR has sought matching the count in EVMs with votes that have been verifiably "recorded as cast" and to ensure that the voter is able to verify through VVPAT slip that his vote, as recorded on the paper slip, has been "counted as recorded".
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
2nd phase of Bengal poll: 39.97 per cent polling till 11 am amid sporadic violence
Kolkata (PTI): Nearly 40 per cent of the 3.21 crore electors voted till 11 am of the second phase of polling in West Bengal amid sporadic violence, while tension gripped the Bhabanipur seat briefly as Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and Suvendu Adhikari took swipes at one another in the same booth area.
Voters queued up from 7 am outside booths in Kolkata, Howrah, Hooghly, Nadia, North and South 24 Parganas and Purba Bardhaman districts, which form Bengal's electoral and political core.
Of the total electorate eligible to vote in this phase, 1.57 crore are women, and 792 are third-gender.
Till 11 am, West Bengal recorded 39.97 per cent polling with Purba Bardhaman registering the highest turnout at 44.50 per cent, followed by Hooghly at 43.12 per cent and Nadia at 40.34 per cent.
ALSO READ: BJP will form govt in Bengal with thumping majority: Nabin
Howrah recorded 39.45 per cent polling, while North 24 Parganas registered 38.43 per cent. Kolkata North and Kolkata South recorded 38.39 per cent and 36.78 per cent turnout, respectively.
South 24 Parganas, a politically crucial district witnessing several high-profile contests, recorded 37.9 per cent voting.
The first phase of polls in 152 Assembly seats of West Bengal on April 23 also recorded more than 41 per cent polling till 11 am.
"Polling is underway peacefully, barring some minor incidents in certain areas. We have sought reports from the officials concerned," a poll panel official said.
The early-morning convergence of Banerjee and Adhikari at the same booth area in Chakraberia turned Bhabanipur -- the chief minister's electoral bastion -- into the centrepiece of the day, reinforcing the symbolic weight of their prestige battle seen as a rematch of Nandigram, where the BJP leader had defeated her in 2021.
Banerjee was already seated outside the booth after receiving complaints of alleged intimidation of local TMC leaders when Adhikari arrived there amid heavy deployment of central forces.
Stepping out of his car, Adhikari declared, "I will not allow any hooliganism", while Banerjee accused the BJP of trying to "rig" the election using central forces, police observers and election officials.
"BJP wants to rig this election. Polls in Bengal are usually peaceful. Is there goonda raj here?" Banerjee told reporters, alleging CRPF personnel had visited the homes of TMC leaders late Tuesday night and unleashed terror in the area.
She alleged that election observers were acting at the BJP's behest and claimed TMC workers were being selectively targeted across districts.
Adhikari dismissed the charges as signs of "frustration", claiming Banerjee had realised that "not a single vote" was coming her way.
Banerjee, who usually steps out of her Kalighat residence late in the day to cast her vote at Mitra Institution School, broke convention and hit the ground before 8 am, moving through Chetla, Padmapukur and Chakraberia, underlining the stakes attached to Bhabanipur and the wider battle for south Bengal.
Reports of violence, vandalism and tension surfaced from several districts.
In Nadia district's Chapra, a BJP polling agent was allegedly assaulted inside a booth during a mock poll. The BJP accused TMC supporters of attacking its agent, while the ruling party denied the charge. In Shantipur, a BJP camp office was found vandalised.
In South 24 Pargana's Bhangar, the ISF alleged that its polling agents were prevented from entering booths.
Howrah's Bally constituency saw tension at a booth in Liluah after an EVM malfunction delayed voting, prompting central forces to lathi-charge agitated voters. Two people were arrested in the matter.
Police and RAF personnel were also seen chasing away crowds near a booth in Amdanga following complaints of unlawful gathering by bike-borne supporters.
In Panihati, BJP candidate Ratna Debnath, the mother of the RG Kar victim, faced protests and her car was allegedly stopped by TMC workers, while in Jagaddal, the recovery of a firearm near a polling booth triggered tension before police and central forces restored order.
BJP candidate from Basanti assembly constituency in South 24 Parganas, Bikash Sardar, on Wednesday, alleged that "200-250 TMC goons" attacked his car and assaulted his driver when he was visiting polling booths in the constituency.
The TMC did not immediately respond to the allegations.
Unlike the first phase, where the BJP sought to defend its north Bengal gains, the final round has shifted the battle squarely to the TMC's strongest belt.
In 2021, the ruling party had won 123 of these 142 seats, leaving just 18 for the BJP and one for the ISF. For the BJP, breaching this southern fortress remains critical if it hopes to mount a serious challenge for power in the state.
