Petition in Delhi HC seeks ban on EVM machines, wants ballot papers for upcoming elections

A petition has been filed before the Delhi High Court that seeks to stop the use of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) and return to ballot paper in any forthcoming elections. The petition against the EVM machines was filed by advocate CR Jaya Sukin who advocated the use of ballot paper in any forthcoming elections. A division bench of  Delhi High Court Chief Justice DN Patel and Justice Jyoti Singh adjourned the matter for August 3 after the petitioner was inaudible due to connectivity issues. 

The petitioner emphasized that in order 'to save the democracy', the ballot paper system has to be inculcated. He stressed that in countries like England, France, Germany, the Netherlands, and the United States, the system of EVM has been banned. "That to save democracy, we must introduce the ballot paper system back in the electoral process in the country. Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) have replaced the old ballot paper system in India, although many countries of the world; including England, France, Germany, Netherlands, and the United States have banned the use of EVMs", the petitioner said. 

Ballot papers more reliable than EVMs, claims petitioner

He added that Article 324 of the Constitution of India stresses that elections conducted by the Election Commission need to be free and fair, and reflect the will of the voters. He urged that ballot paper is a more reliable and transparent method for the electoral process of any country. The petitioner further commented that Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) must be replaced across India with the former.

Reiterating on the error rate of the EVM machine, he said that developed countries like the US, Japan, Germany, and others have rejected EVMs during elections, and have chosen the ballot system of voting. The petitioner said that EVM's were 'not satisfactory instruments' and could be 'hacked'. "This should indicate that EVMs are not satisfactory instruments to be used for the electoral process of a country. EVMs can be hacked. But the ballot system is extremely safe". 

Politics over EVMs

Earlier in March 2021, Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh had also advocated the use of polling through ballot papers, calling the EVMs 'fudged'. His statement came after several MLA's including Navjot Singh Sidhu had questioned the use of EVMs and had said voting should be held through ballot papers. The CM also mentioned that he was among the first people to oppose the use of EVMs in elections, pointing out that countries like Japan, Sweden and the UK were not using them. Between the 2017 UP elections and the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, numerous parties had campaigned against EVMs, generally complaining when they lost elections but glossing over such concerns when they fared well. Their effort failed, however, as none of them were able to demonstrating hacking of EVMs when issued an open challenge. An attempt to get an international hacker to crack EVMs also failed.  (Source- ANI)