Supreme Court Orders India to Evaluate EVM Totaliser Machines

The Supreme Court of India has directed the Union government to evaluate the introduction of totaliser machines for counting votes recorded in Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs). The proposed mechanism would aggregate results from multiple EVMs before disclosure to prevent the identification and potential victimisation of voters at individual polling booths.

During the proceedings, the Election Commission of India expressed support for the principle of anonymising voter choice but raised practical and regulatory concerns. The Commission cited the need for statutory amendments and the risk of disrupting booth-wise verification via Form 17C. Chief Justice Surya Kant observed that these concerns appeared to be implementation difficulties rather than principled objections.

Chief Justice Kant ordered the Union government to examine Rule 59A of the Conduct of Elections Rules, 1961, and the Law Commission's 255th Report to determine if the current legal framework permits the use of totalisers. The Court seeks to identify specific impediments and determine if the mechanism would have any negative impact on the electoral process.