Vested interest groups undermining nation's achievements: Justice Dipankar Datta in EVM judgment

Over the years, certain vested interest groups have been trying to undermine the achievements of the nation, remarked Justice Dipankar Datta of the Supreme Court on Friday while concurring with a decision to stand by the reliability of Electronic Voting Machines (EVM) [Association for Democratic Reforms v Election Commission of India and Anr.].The observation was made in Justice Datta's opinion forming part of the Supreme Court judgment rejecting petitions to tally all Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) slips with votes cast through EVMs. The plea had also advocated for a return to a paper ballot-based system of voting, instead of relying on EVMs."It is of immediate relevance to note that in recent years, a trend has been fast developing of certain vested interest groups endeavouring to undermine the achievements and accomplishments of the nation, earned through the hard work and dedication of its sincere workforce," Justice Datta stated while responding to this suggestion.Justice Datta further observed that there seemed to be a concerted effort to discredit, diminish, and weaken the progress of India on every possible frontier. Any such effort has to be nipped in the bud, he said."No Constitutional court, far less this Court, would allow such attempt to succeed as long as it (the court) has a say in the matter. I have serious doubt as regards the bona fides of the petitioning association when it seeks a reversion to the old order," Justice Datta said.He added that any suggestion to revert to a paper ballot-based system of voting appeared inexplicable. It is only improvements in EVMs or even a better system that people would look forward to in the ensuing years, he said..Justice Datta noted that arguments made by the petitioners in the case were linked to skepticism surrounding the reliability of EVMs. A petitioner in the case, Common Cause (an NGO) had earlier suggested that India should return to paper ballot-based voting, although the suggestion was later withdrawn on April 24. However, Justice Datta said that he agreed with the Election Commission of India's (ECI) submission that the suggestion itself indicated that the petitioner was lacking bona fides (good intentions). "I have no hesitation to accept the submission of senior counsel for the ECI that reverting to the 'paper ballot system' of the bygone era, as suggested, reveals the real intention of the petitioning association to discredit the system of voting through the EVMs and thereby derail the electoral process that is underway, by creating unnecessary doubts in the minds of the electorate," Justice Datta added..In the lead opinion, Justice Khanna also made it clear that the Bench was not in favour of any proposal to return to a paper ballot system. "We must reject as foible and unsound the submission to return to the ballot paper system ... we would be undoing the electoral reforms by directing reintroduction of the ballot papers. EVMs offer significant advantages," Justice Khanna said. .Justice Datta rejected submissions that there was a public trust deficit when it came to the present voting system (EVMs)."Had the voters any doubt regarding the efficacy of the EVMs, I wonder whether the voting percentage would have seen such increase. EVMs have stood the test of time and the increased voting percentage is sufficient reason for us to hold that the voters have reposed faith in the current system and that the report to the contrary, which has been relied on, merits outright rejection," the judge said. .Before parting with the matter, Justice Datta also said that the Court cannot entertain petitions merely on mere assumptions and presumptions. "The mere suspicion that there may be a mismatch in votes cast through EVMs, thereby giving rise to a demand for a 100% VVPAT slips verification, is not a sufficient ground for the present set of writ petitions to be considered maintainable," he added. .The Court was dealing with three petitions seeking directions to tally all VVPAT slips with votes cast through EVMs during elections. The judgment in the case was passed on Friday morning by a Bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta.The Court emphasised in its judgment that there is a need to nurture a culture of trust and collaboration to strengthen democracy, while dismissing all the petitions. Nevertheless, the Court passed the following directions to the ECI and other authorities to make EVMs foolproof:- On completion of symbol loading process the symbol loading units shall be sealed, the sealed container shall be kept in the strong rooms for 45 days;-All candidates shall have the option to be present at the time of verification. The district election officer shall certify the authenticity of the burnt memory;- Burnt memory in microcontroller unit to be checked by team of engineers..To read more on the verdict, click here..[Read Judgment]