Supreme Court Upholds Prior Rulings on VVPAT, EVM Verification

The Supreme Court dismissed a plea for 100% manual counting of VVPAT slips alongside electronic counts, citing existing judgments. Hans Raj Jain's appeal against a Delhi High Court decision was rejected. The court reiterated EVMs are safe and dismissed further scrutiny demands, maintaining prior rulings.

On Monday, the Supreme Court opted not to entertain a plea requesting a directive for full manual verification of VVPAT slips in addition to the electronic vote counting process. The petition sought a deeper audit to ensure comprehensive vote validation.

A bench headed by Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna dismissed the plea from Hans Raj Jain, who challenged the August 2024 ruling by the Delhi High Court. The bench noted the absence of substantial grounds for revisiting the high court's decision.

The apex court underscored that EVMs remain secure and reliable, and Jenkins's plea, seeking complete cross-verification with VVPAT records, provides no new arguments that the courts haven't addressed before.

(With inputs from agencies.)