After nearly every election, concerns arise regarding the integrity of electronic voting machines (EVMs), sparking calls to return to traditional paper ballots to restore public trust in the electoral process. Often, the Congress party, which initially championed the introduction of EVMs, leads these demands.
Former Chief Election Commissioner of India, SY Quraishi, a staunch advocate for the tamper-proof nature of EVMs, consistently dispels doubts. He recently cited the Chandigarh mayoral election as an example, where despite the use of only 34 paper ballots, irregularities occurred. Quraishi stressed the impracticality and susceptibility to fraud of reverting to paper ballots, given historical issues like booth capturing. Instead, he advocates for enhancing Voter Verified Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) systems.
He said, “In Chandigarh mayoral elections, there were just 34 ballot papers and still a disaster took place. Imagine in the case of 80 crore ballot papers, dishonesty will be much more. We left ballot papers because in those times, booth capturing used to take place and if we bring back ballot papers then it will happen again. We should instead focus on improving the VVPAT and I also gave some suggestions for it.”
Last week, the Supreme Court ruled that the presiding officer in the Chandigarh mayoral polls intentionally attempted to deface eight ballot papers and ordered his prosecution. The top court also set aside the decision of the returning officer, who had declared a BJP candidate as winner, and declared the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) candidate to be the winner of the Chandigarh mayoral polls.
Calling for the Election Commission to be more proactively communicative, Quraishi said, “Every party has opposed EVM at some point in time. Congress has done it several times and so has everybody else. All that I would suggest is that the Election Commission should call an all-party meeting and explain to them how this system is fool-proof and assure them that it cannot be manipulated.”
Regarding the suggestion of reverting to the paper ballot system, Quraishi firmly dismisses it, stating, “There is no question of going back to the ballot paper system. You can’t keep going to and fro.”
Addressing concerns raised by the AAP regarding EVM manipulation, Quraishi pointed out the inconsistency of their stance, highlighting their overwhelming success in the Delhi assembly elections, which employed the same EVMs.
The AAP won 67 out of the 70 seats in Delhi. “So there is no case at all. Their win had also come after Modi’s landslide victory in the Lok Sabha polls. What better proof and certification for the EVMs do you need?” the former CEC quipped.
With the integration of VVPAT, Quraishi said that any lingering doubts should dissipate. However, he acknowledges the need for refinement, particularly in expanding the scope of VVPAT counting. He suggests that the Election Commission, in consultation with political parties, should increase the percentage of polling stations where VVPAT counting is conducted, thus enhancing transparency and confidence in the electoral process.
Quraishi emphasised the Election Commission”s duty to actively reassure the public regarding EVM security. He maintains that EVMs are inherently tamper-proof, with stringent safeguards in place. He refutes claims of inherent bias in EVMs, clarifying that button assignments are randomised and alphabetical, precluding manipulation. He also assures tight security measures throughout the EVM lifecycle, from manufacturing to deployment, minimizing the risk of tampering.
While acknowledging rare instances of technical malfunction, Quraishi says swift replacement is arranged to mitigate disruptions.
“Ever since we introduced the EVMs in 1982, every single party at one time or another has challenged and questioned it. And finally came around. The EC was able to demonstrate and prove that EVMs were absolutely non-tamperable,” he said earlier.
