We know what happened with ballot papers: SC while hearing pleas against EVM-VVPAT

The Supreme Court on Tuesday referred to the problems associated with the earlier ballot papers while hearing petitions seeking verification of votes cast on EVMs with paper slips generated through the VVPAT.

"We are in our 60s. We all know what happened when there were ballot papers; you may have but we have not forgotten," Justice Sanjiv Khanna told Prashant Bhushan, the lawyer who is appearing on behalf of the Association for Democratic Reforms.

European example

Bhushan pointed out that most European countries that had opted for voting through EVMs have returned to the paper ballot.

"We can go back to paper ballots. Another option is to give VVPAT (voter verified paper audit trail) slip to the voters in hand. Otherwise, the slips fall into the machine and the slip can be then given to the voter and it can be put into the ballot box,” the noted lawyer said.

“Then the VVPAT design was changed, it had to be transparent glass, but it was changed to dark opaque mirror glass where it is only visible when the light is on for second seconds," he added.

Population issue

But Justice Dipankar Datta was not impressed with Germany's example cited by Bhushan.

In response to the judge’s question, Bhushan replied that Germany had a population of around six crores. India, the judge said, has 50-60 crore voters.

Justice Datta asked the petitioners' counsel not to compare the Indian election with voting in foreign countries.

Ballot paper blues

"My home state West Bengal's population is more than that of Germany. We need to trust someone. Don't try to bring down the system like this. Don't cite such examples. European examples don't work here," he said.

Justice Khanna said: "Ninety-seven crore is the total number of registered voters. We all know what happened when there were ballot papers."

Human weakness

When senior advocate Sanjay Hegde, counsel for another petitioner, suggested that votes cast on EVMs should be tallied with VVPAT slips, Justice Khanna replied: "Yes, 60 crore VVPAT slips should be counted. Right?"

The judge admitted that human interventions "lead to problems and human weakness can be there, which includes biases as well".

"Machine normally without human intervention will give you accurate results. Yes, the problem arises when there is human intervention or (a human) makes unauthorised changes when they are around the software or machine, if you have any suggestion to avert this, then you can give us that," he said.

VVPAT machines

Bhushan underlined that the Election Commission counted only five VVPAT machines in each Assembly when there were 200 such machines.

“This is five per cent only and there can be no justification in this. The seven-second light can also lead to manipulation. The voter can be allowed to take the VVPAT slip and put it into the ballot box," he said.

Fear of punishment

Senior advocate Gopal Sankaranarayan said: "I adopt everything that Bhushan says. We are not saying that there is any malice. Only issue is that of the confidence of the voter in the vote he has cast."

The court then asked the Election Commission about the process of voting, the storage of EVMs and counting of votes.

Justice Khanna noted that there was no provision for strict punishment for tampering with EVMs. "This is serious. There should be fear of punishment," he observed.

What is VVPAT?

The VVPAT enables a voter to see if the vote is cast properly and went to the candidate he or she supports. The VVPAT generates a paper slip that is kept in a sealed cover and can be opened if there is a dispute.

Amid questions regarding the EVM system of voting, the petitions call for cross-verification of every vote.