Opposition parties to approach SC again to demand verification of 50% votes by VVPATs

  1. Recently, the opposition parties had held a meeting to discuss the issue of EVM malfunctioning that cropped up during the 1st phase of Lok Sabha elections. They have further decided to approach the Supreme Court again to demand that at least 50% of paper trails be verified with EVMs.
  2. Recently, the Supreme Court had directed the Election Commission to increase random matching of VVPAT slips with EVMs to five polling booths per assembly segment of a parliamentary constituency or Assembly consistency, from one at present.
  3. The court had observed that the move would ensure greater degree of accuracy and increase satisfaction in the election process of not just the political parties but of the entire electorate.
  4. Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) is an independent system attached to an EVM that allows the voters to verify that their votes are cast as intended. It helps to detect any possible election fraud or malfunction of EVMs.