The Madhya Pradesh High Court recently dismissed a plea seeking a direction to the Election Commission of India (ECI) to take effective measures to rule out the discrepancies in the Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) so as to conduct free and fair upcoming assembly and general elections.

Essentially, the Bench of Chief Justice Ravi Malimath and Justice Vijay Kumar Shukla was hearing the plea filed by Madhya Pradesh Jan Vikas Party, a registered political party under the Representation of People Act, 1951 (RPA) that sought several directions to the ECI including a direction to comply with the RP Act, 1951.

Taking into account the prayers, the Court, while dismissing the plea, observed thus:

The petitioner relied on various provisions of the Representation of People Act and the Rules to submit that there has been a violation of the Rules on various fronts and therefore, the respondent-Election Commission of India be directed to take effective measures to comply with the Rules. It was also submitted before the Court that there are a lot of discrepancies in the Electronic Voting Machines.

Further, stating that tasks such as manufacturing, transportation, randomization, symbol loading in the EVMs are performed by the manufacturing companies, the plea submitted that the statutory provisions and the rules have been violated by the use of electronic voting machines as all these acts must be done only by Election Commission of India.

Hence, filing the instant petition, the petitioner, sought the following directions to the ECI (list not exhaustive ):-

On considering contentions, the Court didn't find any ground that called for any interference. In case, there is any violation then the appropriate remedy is also provided for the same in the Act, added the Court as it dismissed the plea.

Case title - Madhya Pradesh Jan Vikas Party v. Election Commission of India

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