The use of electronic voting machines (EVMs) in some booths of the Paravur Assembly constituency in Ernakulam is etched in the electoral history as they were introduced in the constituency in the 1982 polling, a first in the country.
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The EVMs were introduced in 50 polling stations in the election in which the late A.C. Jose of the Congress and the late N. Sivan Pillai of the Communist Party of India were locked in a tight contest. The Congress candidate was defeated by a razor-thin margin of 123.
Jose challenged the election of Sivan Pillai in the Kerala High Court, arguing that the Representation of the People Act, 1951 and the Conduct of Elections Rules, 1961 did not empower the Election Commission to use EVMs. The High Court refused his plea.
But on an appeal by Jose, the Supreme Court in 1984 ordered a re-poll in the 50 polling stations using conventional ballot papers. Jose won the seat.
In 1992, Parliament inserted Section 61A in the Act and rules validating the use of the EVM and paving way for their use in elections.
The EC started using EVMs widely since 1998. The new generation of EVMs has Voter Verified Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT), which prints a small slip of paper that carries the name, symbol and the serial number of the candidate.
The plea for abolishing EVMs has been repeatedly rejected by the top court. The top court has issued directives for using VVPAT to ensure accuracy and fairness in the EVM practice in 2013.
