Facts for Prelims (FFP)
Source: IE
Context: A petition by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) has called for the 100% counting of Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) slips during elections as the current system fails to guarantee that votes are counted as cast.
- Currently, the Election Commission of India (ECI) mandates counting VVPAT slips in five randomly selected polling stations per Assembly constituency or segment.
- The ECI responded by stating that counting all VVPAT slips in every election would revert to manual polling methods via indirect means.
- Initially, one polling station’s VVPAT slips per Assembly constituency were counted, later increased to five stations after a Supreme Court judgment in 2019.
About VVPATs:
VVPATs are devices attached to Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) that print a paper slip with the voter’s choice, allowing voters to verify their vote.
The VVPAT concept emerged in 2010, and it was gradually introduced in elections, with 100% coverage starting in June 2017.
