Delhi HC rejects PIL against first level checking of EVMs

The Delhi High Court has rejected a public interest litigation on Friday that contested the actions of the State Election Commission regarding the “First Level Checking” of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) and Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trails (VVPATs) before the upcoming general elections.

Anil Kumar, the petitioner and President of Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee, argued that there was insufficient notice provided for the “First Level Checking” (FLC) process, preventing political parties from adequately preparing for it.

A bench comprising Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma and Justice Sanjeev Narula noted that the plea was misdirected towards the State Election Commission, as they were not responsible for the matter in question.

Highlighting that the officials were functioning under the jurisdiction of the Election Commission of India, the court suggested that the petitioner withdraw the current petition and file a new one.

“The petitioner requests the withdrawal of the petition with the option to file a fresh PIL. The petition is dismissed as withdrawn with the mentioned liberty,” the court’s decision read.

The petition had urged the State Election Commission to reschedule the FLC with appropriate notice, alleging that the procedure followed for the earlier FLC, held last month, lacked transparency and deviated from the guidelines of the Election Commission of India.

According to the petition, “The State Election Commission advanced the entire FLC process by three months without providing sufficient time, in contrast to the instructions dated August 30, 2017, and September 13, 2022. This action contradicted publicly known instructions and left the political parties involved as mere bystanders during the FLC process.”

(With PTI inputs)