18.9.17

Gujarat and HP elections to see 100% use of VVPATs

While the Election Commission will hold the upcoming polls in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh fully with voter-verifiable paper audit trail machines, there will be no mandatory counting of paper trail for a designated percentage of polling stations in the two states.

The EC is not in favour of introducing compulsory counting of VVPAT slips up to a definite percentage just yet, as it wants to focus on smooth implementation of 100% VVPAT-based polls in the two states later this year.

Stating there was already a provision in the counting rules enabling a candidate to seek paper trail count if not satisfied with the result, the EC functionary said candidates were free to exercise this option in the Gujarat and Himachal polls. The suggestion for compulsory counting of paper trail up to a fixed percentage was first placed before the EC at an all-party meeting on EVMs in May .

Some parties, including AAP , demanded this be introduced to instil confidence in the reliability of VVPAT.

While AAP had mooted mandatory counting of paper trail in 25% polling stations in each constituency, EC discussed a 5% ceiling, ensuring that paper trail was not mandatorily counted in less than five or maximum 14 polling stations of each constituency .

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