The Supreme Court on Wednesday decided to send a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) seeking time-stamping of the Voter Verified Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) to the Election Commission for examining its technical feasibility. The court clarified that this issue lies within the poll panel's policy domain.
Petitioner's Argument
Appearing for petitioner N Suresh Reddy, a Telangana-based businessman, senior advocates Devadatt Kamat and Amit Raval argued before a bench headed by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant that time-stamping of VVPATs would ensure transparency and fairness in elections. They highlighted the often-observed phenomenon of last-minute surges in voting as a key concern.
Kamat stated that Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) must be enabled to print the exact time of voting by a voter on the VVPAT slip without disclosing the voter's identity. This additional feature, he argued, would act as an audit attribute to enhance electoral integrity.
Court's Response
The bench observed that since the matter falls within the Election Commission's policy domain and involves examination of technical feasibility aspects, it would be appropriate for the commission to examine the issue thoroughly. Kamat persisted, noting that several electoral reforms have been implemented at the behest of the Supreme Court or by its orders.
However, the bench pointed out that the petitioner had never submitted a representation to the Election Commission on this issue. Therefore, it would be better for the commission to examine the matter in detail first.
Petitioner's Clarifications
The petitioner further clarified that he was not seeking a return to paper ballots or 100% counting of VVPAT slips. He also stated that he was not questioning the results of any election. Instead, his sole request was for an additional audit attribute on the VVPAT slip, namely time-stamping of every slip.
The Supreme Court's decision to refer the PIL to the Election Commission underscores the importance of balancing judicial oversight with the poll panel's expertise in technical and policy matters. The commission will now assess the feasibility of implementing time-stamping on VVPATs, which could potentially enhance transparency in the electoral process.
