National Desk, 26th April: The Supreme Court on April 26 dismissed all petitions seeking 100% verification of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) votes with their Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) slips, as well as the prayers of petitioners to return to ballot paper voting.
A bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta announced the decision, considering protocols and technical aspects. Justice Khanna mentioned the possibility of electronic machines for counting paper slips and suggested the inclusion of a barcode along with the symbols for each party.
The court emphasized the sealing and storage of the Symbol Loading Unit (SLU) for at least 45 days after the completion of the symbol loading process. Additionally, candidates have the option to request a microcontroller program check of EVMs by a team of engineers within seven days after results are announced.
Justice Datta highlighted the importance of maintaining a balanced perspective, cautioning against blindly distrusting any aspect of the system, which could invite doubts.
The decision comes amidst ongoing concerns raised by the Opposition regarding the originality of the VVPAT machine and the necessity to cross-check VVPAT slips with EVM votes.