Gujarat poll: EC puts in place robust administrative system

New Delhi: A day prior to the first phase of polling in Gujarat, the Election Commission of India (ECI) on Friday sought to allay apprehensions vis-a-vis the integrity of its Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) by saying that it has put in place "an elaborate framework of system, security protocols and procedural checks" to prevent any "possible misuse" of the voting machines.

The EC is also deploying for the first time the Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) machines in all the 50,128 polling stations in the state to "inject greater transparency and credibility" to the voting process.

"The comprehensive framework of administrative protocols and procedural safeguards consist of the 'first level checking' of all EVMs and VVPATs, strict regime of mock polls conducted on every EVM and VVPAT during the first level check, candidate setting and on poll day before the beginning of actual polls, two-stage randomisation of machines, stringent security protocols for storage of machines before, during and after the polls, and comprehensive videography and CCTV coverage of all EVM and VVPAT related activities and storage in strong-rooms," the EC said in a statement.

Any malfunctioning EVM or VVPAT found during the first level checks were sent to the factories so that the same cannot be used in the election, it said, adding that after the first-level checks, the machines are kept in strong room under round the clock security and CCTV coverage. The poll panel also clarified that the sequence of candidates' names is in alphabetical order, first for the national and state recognised parties, followed by other state registered parties, and then by independents.

"The sequence in which the candidates appear on the Ballot Unit is contingent on the names of the candidates and their party and cannot be ascertained beforehand. Hence, the serial number of the candidates of any particular party will vary in each constituency and cannot be determined beforehand thereby ruling out any possibility of manipulation," it said.

"Once the candidate setting is done, the Ballot Unit of the EVM is also sealed so that nobody has access to the inside of the Ballot Unit too. These seals also bear signatures of candidates," it added.