SC Junks Oppn’s Plea, Refuses to Increase Verification of VVPAT
21 Opposition parties were demanding raising the number of EVM machines to 5.17 lakh.
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The Supreme Court on Tuesday, 7 May, rejected a review plea filed by 21 Opposition parties seeking a direction to increase VVPAT verification from five to at least 50 percent of EVMs during counting of votes in the general elections 2019.
Opposition parties, led by Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu, were demanding 50 percent verification of the VVPAT slips.
Earlier, on 8 April, the apex court had directed the Election Commission to increase random matching of VVPAT slips with EVMs in five polling booths per Assembly segment from one booth.
We Respect SC's Order: Chandrababu Naidu
Seeking VVPAT Verification to be Raised to 25 Percent: Abhishek Singhvi
Senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi, appearing for petitioners, told the bench that the apex court had increased the random matching of VVPAT slips with EVMs to five polling booths per Assembly segment and they are now seeking that it should be increased to 25 per cent at least.
“It will be for the satisfaction of confidence building measures,” Singhvi told the bench also comprising Justices Deepak Gupta and Sanjiv Khanna.
Singhvi said the present increase of random matching of VVPAT slips with EVMs to five polling booths per Assembly segment amounted to a meagre two per cent and petitioners are seeking that it be raised to 25 percent at least.
Not Inclined to Modify Our Order: SC
We are not inclined to modify our order, SC said while dismissing review plea on random matching of VVPAT slips.
No Increase in Verification of VVPAT Paper Trail: SC Junks Plea
The Supreme Court has rejected Opposition’s review plea seeking a direction to increase VVPAT verification from five to at least 50 percent of EVMs during counting of votes in the general elections 2019.
Opposition Leaders Present in Court
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu, Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah, CPI’s D Raja are among the leaders present in the court.
What Is the 8 April Order?
The Supreme Court had increased voter-verified paper audit trail (VVPAT) from one EVM per Assembly segment to five randomly selected Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs).
The court said this was being done to ensure the greatest degree of accuracy and satisfaction in the election process.
The court’s direction came on a plea by leaders of 21 Opposition parties who wanted it to be hiked to 50 percent of EVMs per Assembly segment.
The court's order is a major setback for the Opposition parties as the court has merely increased the quantum of EVM verification using paper trail by 1.99 percent, that is, out of total 10.35 lakh EVMs, only 20,625 will be used in counting to verify results.
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Published: 07 May 2019,10:28 AM IST