HC issues notice to poll body on plea against decision to not use VVPATs in municipal elections

Nagpur, Nov 7 (PTI) The Nagpur bench of the Bombay High Court on Friday issued notice to the Maharashtra State Election Commission (SEC) on a petition challenging its decision to not use VVPATs in the upcoming local body polls.

A bench headed by Justice Anil Kilor sought the election body’s response to the petition by next week.

In his petition filed through advocates Pawan Dahat and Nihal Singh Rathod, Congress leader Prafulla Gudadhe said that the Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail Machine (VVPAT) was essential for a transparent election process.

If the SEC is not going to use the VVPAT, then the polls should be held using ballot papers, the petition said. VVPAT is an independent system attached to an Electronic Voting Machine (EVM), allowing voters to verify that their votes are cast as intended.

The petitioner has urged the HC to direct the SEC to hold elections for the upcoming local body polls through ballot papers or quash the commission’s decision to not use VVPAT machines.

He also sought the court to restrain the SEC from using EVMs without VVPAT in any election.

The right to vote is a fundamental right and every citizen has the right to know if his or her vote has been rightly executed, the plea said.

Gudadhe referred to a 2013 Supreme Court judgment which held that VVPAT was an indispensable requirement for free and fair elections.

“Without the use of VVPAT, the Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) recording votes become unverifiable. There is no other method by which it can be ascertained if the vote cast has been recorded properly,” the plea said.

The election commission is “hell bent” on using a non-transparent and unreliable system at the cost of fairness in the elections, it added.

“There is no rule that elections have to be conducted through EVMs. The same can be conducted through ballot papers if the election commission is facing a dearth of VVPAT machines,” the petition said.

Elections to various local bodies in the state are to be completed by January 2026. The SEC has said there is no provision in the laws or rules governing local body elections for the use of VVPAT machines. PTI CLS SP NR