New Delhi: The on Tuesday (September 1) sought the Centre’s response on the introduction of a ‘totaliser’ mechanism for counting votes in parliamentary, Assembly and local body elections, saying the government should examine the legal and practical hurdles involved.
A bench comprising Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice V. Mohana was hearing petitions seeking declaring election results for an entire parliamentary constituency instead of booth-wise vote count.
The plea was filed by advocate Ashwini Upadhyay. Notably, a totaliser is a mechanism under which votes from multiple polling booths are aggregated and counted together instead of revealing the voting pattern of individual booths. The petitioner argued that the system could protect voter confidentiality and help prevent pre-poll intimidation and post-poll harassment.
During the hearing, senior counsel Dama Sheshadri Naidu, representing the Election Commission of India (ECI), maintained that the introduction of a totaliser would require legislative amendments as well as political consensus.
“We have already said in the affidavit that at this time the integrity of EVMs is itself a subject of frequent public questioning despite clear rulings of SC. At this time we cannot introduce a yet legally unregulated mechanism . A political consensus is required to introduce totaliser coupled with legislative changes,” he said.
Advocate Ashwini Upadhyay submitted, “We are seeking a totaliser to ensure the privacy of voters.”
“Where is counter?” the CJI responded.
Replying to the , Naidu said that it was filed yesterday. Meanwhile, advocate Upadhyay argued that the totaliser was necessary to safeguard the privacy of voters. He also pointed to an earlier ECI position on the issue and asked the court to consider its January 12, 2018 order.
“That is totally against the ECI stand in 2018. Please see 12 January order,” he said.
Naidu submitted that there are practical difficulties in implementing the “totaliser’ mechanism. “Totaliser is not to be introduced as of now; its introduction, if considered necessary by the Parliament/Government of India in the future, must be preceded by the requisite legislative and policy amendments conferring legal sanction upon it, and the evolution of a mechanism capable of ensuring full and continued compliance with the mandatory directions of this Hon’ble Court,” he added.
The SC bench then sought the Centre’s view on introducing totalisers in parliamentary, state and local body elections
“The government may look into it. What are the legal blocks, amendments required for the implementation of the introduction of totalisers?” CJI Surya Kant told Attorney-General R Venkataramani.
What Is Totaliser Method?
A totaliser is a mechanism which allows votes from 14 booths to be counted together so that voters are saved from pre-poll intimidation and post-poll harassment. Currently, the votes cast via EVMs are counted on an individual booth basis. Petitioners says totaliser helps mask booth-wise voting patterns. PIL petitioner Ashwini Upadhyaya said it can prevent incidents like post-poll violence