Plea to stop use of EVMs dismissed by Delhi HC, Rs 10,000 cost imposed

The Delhi High Court Tuesday dismissed a plea seeking direction to the Election Commission to stop the use of electronic voting machines (EVM). The plea had asked to revert to ballot papers in the forthcoming polls in the country.

A bench of Chief Justice D N Patel and Justice Jyoti Singh said the petition by C R Jaya Sukin - a lawyer, was a publicity interest litigation based on hearsay and baseless allegations and averments.

‘Nothing in argued by the petitioner (Sukin) concretely on the working of the EVM. We see no reason to entrain the writ petition’, the court said.

It noted that the petition was based on four documents, out of which one was a news item and others pertained to his representation and plea before Supreme Court, and Sukin himself had no knowledge about EVMs at all.

‘The petitioner has read the news item the filed the writ petition without looking at the EVM and working of the EVM...which is approved by the Election Commission as well as the Parliament’, the court said.

The court also added that Sukin can file a fresh petition on the issue after conducting research and making proper averments.

‘The writ petition is dismissed with costs of Rs 10,000 to be deposited in four weeks towards Delhi State Legal Services Authority’, the court ordered.