Tribune News Service
New Delhi, April 29
The Supreme Court today issued notice to the Election Commission and the Centre on a PIL demanding decriminalisation of complaints about malfunctioning of electronic voting machines (EVMs) and voter verified paper audit trail (VVPAT) that turn out to be false.
A Bench headed by Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi asked the EC and the Centre to respond to Ahya’s PIL that challenged the legality of Rule 49MA of the Conduct of Election Rules, 1961.
If a voter were to complain against deviant behaviour of EVMs/VVPAT, he/she required to record a test vote in the presence of the presiding officer and other agents who were supposed to observe the paper slip generated by the printer.
Presently, the burden of proof is on the voter who will face criminal charges, irrespective of whether that reporting was truthful and honest, contended petitioner Sunil Ahya.
“This could deter an elector from coming forth and making any complaint which is an essential ingredient in a continuous exercise for improving a process,” he contended. The petitioner requested the top court to set aside Rule 49MA of the Conduct of Election Rules, 1961, which, read with Section 177 of the IPC, criminalises reporting of deviant behaviour of EVMs and VVPATs. He contended that putting the onus on the voter to prove his complaint or face criminal prosecution for an offence that prescribed up to six months in jail went against his right to freedom of expression.
from The Tribune http://bit.ly/2DDUBJz
via Today’s News Headlines
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